A Dragon Out of Time, A Crash and Spyro Story
by MarcusRak
Summary: The story of how Crash raised Spyro into adulthood, after trips back in time to collect Power Crystals has him save a stolen Dragon Egg. Despite better judgment, seeing Spyro hatch causes Crash to love him like the son he never could have with the lost love of his life. But when they learn of the tragedies caused to Spyro's home because he disappeared, Crash must let his... son go.
1. He's Destined to Defeat You

**Chapter 1: He's Destined to Defeat You**

"Both of us have lived for a very long time, Sorceress" Malefor said as he strutted about the Sorceress' throne room. His presence here was beginning to make her uncomfortable. All Dragons are her sworn enemies, it was for that very reason she banished all of them from the Forgotten Realms millennia ago. Somehow, this Malefor Dragon was able to find her and was now speaking to her candidly. Why am I even tolerating his presence? But deep down the Sorceress knew the answer even before she asked the question to herself. This large, powerful, purple Dragon frightened her. She of course tried to give no inclination that she was intimidated by him, though she herself wasn't exactly sure if she was showing any outward signs of being afraid. But why am I afraid, she thought to herself again. I am the Sorceress; I have complete mastery of all elemental magic and can take down any Dragon. But even as this thought entered her mind she knew that this Dragon was different.

"Why are you here, Malefor? No Dragons are allowed in my Realm. I thought I've made that abundantly clear." The Sorceress felt she was doing a decent job concealing her emotions, but she also couldn't get a read on Malefor at all.

"To deliver a warning. I'm aware of your sentiment towards Dragons, and although I try not to take your resentment of my species and I personally, it still stings. What have I ever done to earn the hatred of the mighty Sorceress?" Was he seriously patronizing me? My name is feared throughout the Forgotten Realms and throughout Avalar. But Malefor was a prideful Dragon, the Sorceress could tell as soon as she first saw him. It was to go against his very nature to put himself beneath another creature, especially one that wasn't a Dragon. What is his ploy?

"My eternal grudge with the Dragon race needs neither an explanation nor justification, Malefor. Now I ask again, why are you here?"

"I assume you know a lot about Dragons. They say you can't hate something unless you love it as well. To devote so much energy into loathing someone with every fiber of your being takes a conscious effort to focus endlessly on the very thing you despise. It's why you're allowing me to have this conference with you. You know who I am and how dangerous I can be." The Sorceress gulped silently as she maintained her poker face. She could see the rage boiling quietly in Malefor's eyes. He was indeed one of the most dangerous Dragons in existence. "However there is only one creature in existence who has lived as long as me and who has killed roughly as many Dragons as I have. So in mutual respect I come here and heed this warning. Another purple Dragon has been born in the Realm of the Artisans. Like me, he is destined to wield both the elemental forces and the convexity itself. If he is allowed to reach adulthood, he will rise to challenge us, for it is his destiny. I've seen in, and surely you too must have been warned by your prophets, maybe not specifically, but nevertheless were told of a challenge to your throne." It was true that I've been warned by my prophet of a danger to my throne, but how could Malefor know that?

"If I already knew about the danger you've come here to warn me about, Malefor, then why tell me again?"

"Because I'm asking you to deal with the problem. Unlike me, you have an entire kingdom at your disposal, while I would have to deal with this personally. I'm telling you to figure out a way to kill that Dragon now, before it has any chance to live. Before he has any chance to defeat you." To think that any Dragon stood a chance against me was laughable. But Malefor had said that this infant was a purple Dragon. And Malefor was a fully-fledged adult purple Dragon, which made her all the more nervous about this infant Dragon. Malefor then came uncomfortably close to the Sorceress and circled around her. The Sorceress did not move or allow her body to tense up. To move or show discomfort would be a sign of weakness, and she couldn't allow herself to be weak in the presence of a Dragon. His head was now inches away from hers, and he whispered into her ear. "Once you kill him, the other Dragons will fall. You'll have what you've always wanted. And them someday, I will too." He walked away from her and headed towards a large window. "Goodbye, Sorceress." He said as coldly as when he first came here, but with a faint smile, then he flew out the window. The sudden gush of wind from his wings made the Sorceress shutter, but she also knew that his presence here today had rattled her. She has been alive for a thousand years, and today was the first time since she was a young that a Dragon had scared her. Although "scared" wasn't the appropriate feeling, at least not now since she didn't think she needed to worry about Malefor at the moment. It was… what Malefor said about hatred. Her loathing of the Dragons began in her adolescence, before she found the power she needed to kill the creatures that murdered her father. But today she had met a Dragon who was either her equal or superior in magical prowess.

The Sorceress' scepter shook in her hand, before she realized that it was her hand itself that was shaking. She forced herself to calm down, and proceeded to think about how to deal with the problem Malefor had warned her about. Another purple Dragon… Malefor had been born thousands of years ago, like she was. Purple Dragons were rare, the pinnacle of their species abilities. Now that the Sorceress knew of one in its infancy, she had to kill it. But why did Malefor need me to deal with the problem? The answer was obvious now that she remembered where the infant Dragon was born. Neither she nor Malefor could get into the Dragon Realms, there was a magical barrier keeping them out specifically. But the Sorceress did have the resources to find and steal a Dragon egg. Maybe that baby Dragon could be of some use is she could appropriate its magic abilities. The process would kill the baby Dragon, but that was what she wanted in the first place. And to think that a Dragon would be beneficial to her in any way, it almost made her cringe, like how Malefor made her cringe. Hatred…

"Bianca!" Little feet could be heard as a young bunny made her way as quickly as she could to the throne room.

"Yes my liege." Such a young prodigy of magic. Someday I'll have to tell her what happened to the rest of her family and her peoples. How I murdered all of them so they couldn't rise to challenge me.

"Prep the orb, I have a call to make."

"Right away, my liege."

* * *

Whenever Crash doubted why he did the things he did, risking his life to save others from Cortex's malice, all he had to do was remember that he was created by that man to do his evil bidding. He had to remember how frightened Tawna was when her life was in the hands of Cortex, and how much he loved her. He would do anything to keep her alive, to keep her safe. It was because Crash cherished life that he must protect it. So if that meant traveling the world and time itself to find special crystals that Cortex intended to use to enslave all life on the planet, he would do so. It didn't matter that it was dangerous, or that no one except Tawna and his sister Coco would ever know he risked his life to save the world. It was because it was the right thing to do.

This particular crystal Crash was searching for was located very far back in the past. Looking at the large sphere in front of him which sporadically irradiated lightning bolts in all directions showed some sort of prehistoric swamp with lava pits and bones of ancient dinosaurs. Ominous... The date showing on the Time Twisting Machine's display noted that the period of time of his destination was hundreds of thousands of years ago, the furthest in time which he had ever gone up to this point. This was also the last of the crystals he needed to get. Without this treasure, Cortex could not complete his goal of world conquest. Nervous as usual, Crash found the courage to enter the portal in front of him. Little did Crash know that he would save the world in more ways than one upon traveling to the past.

Upon arrival, he landed on his feet as the glistening sphere behind collapsed into a singularity. Certainly this was most terrifying location Crash has been to so far (maybe besides Cortex's castle). His mission was to find the Power Crystal in this swamp; one device that Coco invented would at least point him in the right direction, while another component of the Time Twisting Machine Crash had in his pocket would allow him to summon another portal that would take him back to the future. He navigated through the swamp, trying to keep a low profile while not being spotted by any of the wildlife. His plan to remain undetected eventually failed and he had to run from a triceratops. His evasion actually ended up leading him very close to the Power Crystal (fortunately). He headed in its direction when he overheard some voiced in the distance. He pivoted his ears to better locate the noise and understand the noises and soon heard what was being said. It… was English! He slyly made his way to the location of the conversation, and spotted three human shaped creatures covered in three differently colored robes conversing around a fire.

"Why don't we just destroy the egg and continue with our real reward" said the blue robed thief. He was holding the Power Crystal in his hands. He clung to it and stared at it intensely.

"Because we're not going to defy the orders of the Sorceress" said the green thief. "She is not to be messed with. We were instructed to steal this egg and bring it back to her. If you value your life, then you will do what she asked of us."

"We risked our lives stealing this egg" yelled the red thief, "and we were almost killed on the spot. We're lucky to have made it out of Artisans alive."

"Well if someone wasn't distracted by a certain crystal, we wouldn't have been spotted." retorted the green thief.

"Hey," the blue thief shouted angrily, "we aren't going to be paid for this; I just made sure our efforts weren't in vain."

"To the Sorceress," the red thief said coldly, "sparing our lives is its own reward."

"And besides," the blue thief added irately, "there's no way in hell your sharing the profits once you pawn that crystal, you greedy bastard. It's written all over you face."

"Well maybe I won't!"

"Come on you two," the red thief said reasonably, "can't we at least get this egg to the Sorceress so she doesn't have a reason to kill us, and then we can 'discuss' what to do afterword's. I don't even know why you two agreed to stop anyway. If this egg is so valuable, who's not to say were not being followed by Dragons who tried to kill us?"

"Like any Dragon has the courage to voluntarily leave their Realms" Replied the blue thief crudely. "They've been cooked up on those islands for centuries and wouldn't have the gulls to leave those Realms even if we stole all their treasure."

"And I think I'm kind of jealous of the Dragons" replied the green thief honestly. "They don't have to deal with the Sorceress."

"You've got that right" replied the red robbed thief.

Whoever this Sorceress creature was, Crash didn't want to meet her. But those thieves said that they were delivering a Dragon Egg to her. Crash could see the purple egg with white specks on it near the middle of the camp. A Dragon? Those were real? The helpless Dragon inside its egg reminded Crash of a particular baby Polar Bear he met while in the Artic retrieving a crystal. It was injured and its mother wasn't anywhere in site. He made a splint for its broken leg and used it to realign the fractured bone in its front paw. Crash then spent several days finding it food and nursing it back to health. I made a friend that day, and I was also chased away by that young bear's mother. I couldn't have outrun the angry bear, but she didn't pursue me, she only chased me off. She might have been a feral creature, but I think she understood what I was doing… maybe. Those thieves had the Power Crystal I was searching for. But that crystal belonged to someone else. Dragons they said. So maybe Dragons are intelligent. In any case, Crash wasn't going to allow these thieves get away with this, and maybe they could avoid this Sorceress creature for failing to do their job.

Crash vaulted towards the camp, startling the three thieves. Crash reached for the egg and was quickly pursued. The thieves were fast, really fast. They caught up to him in three seconds and tackled him to the ground, causing the egg to fall to the floor. Crash fidgeted on the ground and flung the green thief off of him. The blue one charged at Crash, but was met with a violent spin attack by Crash which flung the bandit way further than should have been possible. It was Crash's specialty, and these bandits were going to learn the power of that move.

"What the hell is that thing!" The red thief shouted.

"Doesn't matter! It's after the egg. Don't let him get away with it!"

The blue thief quickly sprinted at Crash, and he dogged the knife that came from within his robe. After his second attempt to impale Crash, he grabbed his arm and used his spinning ability to fling him away. Crash turned in time to see the green thief approach, but was tackled to the ground by him. Crash was struck in the face and pinned to the ground as the red thief picked up the Dragon egg. But the commotion must have lured pterodactyls to the area, because one swooped down and picked up the green thief. He screamed in a panic as he was carried off. Other pterodactyls could be seen and heard in the sky. Crash moved quickly towards the distracted and terrified red thief and launched at him. He dragged him to the ground and wrestled the Dragon egg from him and reached for the crystal. The red thief kept the crystal away from him, and reached for his concealed knife and thrust it into Crash's abdomen. The pain rocketed up Crash spine and he went limp onto the ground. The red thief got up from the ground, before he reactively looked up and dropped down again to avoid the talons of a swooping pterodactyl. Crash grasped the deep puncture on his side, and his hand was instantly covered in blood. But Crash ignored the pain and got up. He ran as best he could and picked up both the Dragon egg and the Crystal. He felt around for the return pad that would activate his way back home, but couldn't feel it in his pocket. The blue thief returned holding the device in his hand and he ran towards the red thief.

"Come on, we need to get out of here" The red thief shrieked as his blue accomplice approached.

"But that creature has the egg. We can't return to the Forgotten Realms without it."

Crash grimaced as blood continued to spill onto his jeans. His hands were full with an egg and a crystal, and he definitely couldn't outrun these quick thieves with a gash in his lower abdomen. But a pterodactyl grabbed Crash and carried him into the air. He dropped the egg after about two seconds, and the blue thief caught it after he dropped the return pad. The pad bounced off the ground, and this caused it to activate; a huge sphere appeared above the component of the Time Twisting Machine. Crash used the Crystal to injure the pterodactyl enough to cause it to drop him. Crash plummeted towards the ground and painfully landed on his legs. The drop was about fifteen to twenty feet, and he instantly reeled in pain in both his legs and in his wound. But again, Crash fought through the increased pain and made his way toward the thieves. He threw the Crystal at the blue thief. It struck him in the back of the head since he was too distracted by the portal. The red thief turned around after seeing the crystal with his peripheral vision, but Crash spun into him, sending him careening into a tree. The spin almost caused Crash to pass out (he must have been losing a lot of blood). Crash regained his focus as the blue thief lunged at him, and Crash was able to move out of his way and wrestled the egg out of his hands. A shriek of another pterodactyl caused both Crash and the blue thief to turn around as it flew straight at them. Crash ran toward the activated portal as the pterodactyl rapped it's talons on the blue thief's shoulders. The crystal was still lying near the activated portal, so Crash slid and grabbed it as well before launching into the sphere.

Crash came back to the future and landed harshly on the ground, the egg rolling forward gently on the ground and the crystal bouncing on the floor. Crash labored to get back up, falling once as he tried. He managed to get up and limped his way forward. Crash was hoping that Coco would be nearby, but she wasn't anywhere in sight. And Crash couldn't shout to see if she was close. Just another disadvantage of being a mute. Crash stumbled forward, looking for anything to either stich the hole in his lower stomach or clean up and wrap up the wound. As he searched, he began to lose conscious again. He collapsed to the floor. No good deed goes unpunished. No, that wasn't the expression Crash was looking for…


	2. Frailty of Body, Strength of Family

**Chapter 2: Frailty of the Body, Strength of the Family**

One blink. Two blinks. Three. Crash felt sore… all over. He tried to get up but instantly felt extreme pain in his lower abdomen. Oh right, I was dying earlier. Well, at least I'm still alive. The Power Crystal he had retrieved from the past still lay in front of him, refracting light into his eyes. And next to it lay a large egg a little further ahead. Its ellipsoid shape and soft texture reminded Crash that he had indeed brought a Dragon to the present. Had he done the right thing? Should he bring the Dragon back to the past? Could he? Crash got himself off the floor feeling less pain than before and picked up the egg and held it in his hands. A sorceress wanted this creature dead. Well… Cortex wants me dead and I certainly don't want to die. I guess this little Dragon and I have something in common: very evil people want us to die. Now where the heck was Coco? Crash limped down a long corridor and towards a central platform. I can worry about the Power Crystal later; I just want to go home. He turned left and then headed down another corridor, this time to a different section of the Time Twisting Machine. There was one portal that Coco had assigned to bring both her and him to their home whenever they needed. Now seemed as good of a time as ever.

Crash opened the front door to his house and stepped inside. Coco wasn't home. Where was she? I'm starting to get worried. Crash staggered further and placed the purple and white egg on a coffee table, before plopping down on a green couch exhausted. He wasn't sure how long he had blacked out, but it definitely didn't relieve his fatigue. Crash stared at the large red scar on his lower stomach. There was no way to tell whether the knife had cut any important internal organs. He was able to move around fine if not in discomfort, and Crash was sure his life was no longer in immediate danger. Lucky me. I need to stitch this gash closed ASAP. After searching around the house, Crash began disinfecting the open wound with antibiotics and proceeded to sew the gash closed with a thin wire, grimacing each time the needle pierced his skin. He cut loose the excess wire and now finally relaxed on the couch.

Being alone allowed him to think about what having this Dragon in his life meant. Am I really going to raise a large, winged, fire breathing creature on this island, in my home? What if it tries to eat me? This wasn't at all like the cub I helped in the Arctic, Crash thought. That creature wasn't going to grow up in my house. I have to bring this Dragon back. I have to before it hatches. And besides, what would Coco say about this… wherever she might be at the moment. She would probably tell me that I was wrong to remove this creature from its home and rob it of its normal life. But that swamp wasn't its home. This egg was stolen from a realm that the thieves said Dragons never left. If I was to bring this baby Dragon back to that dangerous prehistoric swamp, it wouldn't be to its home. What am I supposed to do, then? I felt like I did the right thing, but did I do the smart thing? I got the crystal right, but I almost died trying to save this Dragons life. But I didn't die, and I can't accept innocent creatures being hurt because of my negligence to their plights. If I could find this Dragon's parents, I would without hesitation. But there isn't any way for me to find out. Would this Dragon have a normal life if it was raised on this island? Should I tell him if he's from the past? Tell him? It's an animal, right, it can't understand me? Then Crash thought back to what one of the thieves said about the Power Crystal they had stolen. It came from this Dragon's home realm. For Dragons to gather these crystals is to suggest that they had a sense of wealth. Maybe this Dragon would understand me. There's no saying whether those thieves I encountered in the past were humans (not that far back in time anyway). And the strangest thing was that they were speaking English. That shouldn't be possible. Hell… Time Travel shouldn't be possible; my creation shouldn't be possible, outsmarting Cortex shouldn't be possible. But I've pulled off that feat twice and hopefully can do it for a third time as well. Maybe anything is possible, even adding a new member to my small family.

It was faint at first, but a shattering noise slowly aroused Crash from his slumber on the couch. When had I fallen asleep? Crash rubbed his eyes, relieved to find that his lower abdomen wasn't hurting as bad as it had before. The egg on the table moved. It was seen in Crash's peripheral vision, but when he saw it move again, Crash pulse quickened. That Dragon was hatching now! Small fracture lines appeared growing along the surface of the egg, as it moved once again. A chunk of the upper half of the egg chipped off and fell to the floor. A yellow horn could be seen protruding from the hole in the egg. What do I do… what do I do!? Thought upon thought raced through Crash's mind, but he was frozen in both fear and anticipation. It was a relief to know that the ordeal from yesterday (or hundreds of thousands of years ago) hadn't killed the baby Dragon before he had a chance at life. A tiny claw appeared from the hole in the egg; a claw grasped to the outer shell and ripped away more pieces of the egg. The Dragon's skin color was purple. Its head finally appeared, and the Dragon tried to exit the egg via the hole it made on the top of the egg. All of the Dragon's weight shifted to one side of the egg, and it lurched forward, threatening to roll of the table. Crash quickly reached for the tumbling egg and prevented it from moving any further. The young Dragon crawled out of the now shattered egg, a thin layer of embryonic fluid covering most of his body. It opened its eyes and saw the world for the first time, Crash obstructing the view. Its yellow forearms and red wing membranes stretched out as it took another bold step forward. The Dragon was indeed magnificent and beautiful. The young Dragon was very close to the end of the small table, so Crash decided to gently lift him in the air. Crash approached cautiously. This still was a Dragon, right, no need to startle the creature. Crash's hands looming towards the small Dragon caused it to look at him. It looked at Crash not in fear, but in curiosity. The irises of the Dragon's eyes were just as purple as his scaly skin, but the pupils were a dark black. As Crash lifted him into the air, he also felt the Dragons yellow underbelly and noted it had a different texture from his back, which matched the texture of his wings. Definitely a male, Crash observed. The Dragon yawed as Crash held him in the air, and continued to stare at him with an innocent yet curious glare. Crash lowered him and placed him on the floor. From this vantage point, Crash could see the two yellow horns emerging from the left and right of his head, as well as the yellow spikes protruding from the crown of the Dragon's head, continuing along his neck and spine, and to the tip of his tail. The young Dragon walked on the floor, looking around as he took in the sights and smells of Crash's home. Crash watched him; unsure of this Dragon's future, but at the same time knew that he now had a special place in his heart. Now that Crash's seen him, it would be hard to let the Dragon go, even though it would be the right thing to do. The Dragon made his way towards the fireplace, which had a slow burring fire atop a couple of smoldering logs. He paused, feeling the warmth of the fire on his body. He turned around and brought his neck backwards before unleashing a small puff of fire forward from his mouth. The flame's touched the area rug under the coffee table where the shattered egg still remained, causing that spot of the rug to be covered in small fires. Crash rushed over to the singed area and stomped on it with his shoe. The sound and vibrations startled the young Dragon, and he backed away from Crash. Scaring the young Dragon made Crash feel awful, so he slowly knelt onto the ground and outstretched his right hand towards the Dragon. He watched Crash's hand lower towards him. He did not retreat backwards; instead he approached and sniffed Crash's index finger before placing his own tiny front paw on Crash's fingers. Did he just mimic my gesture? He stared at Crash as he did the same. Crash couldn't help but smile. What have I gotten myself into?

* * *

"You'd think after two defeats you would get the idea Cortex. My brother has collected the last Power Crystal. You failed."

"Didn't it ever occur to you that since your brother has gathered all the Crystals in one location, all I have to do now is take them from him. Your genius plan to stop me by taking the only resource I need to complete my diabolical plan has backfired so magnificently, I can't help but be happy."

"Well you'll have to defeat my brother to get them, and you don't have a good track record at accomplishing that. How did it feel to have your laboratory on the third island and your Cortex Vortex destroyed by your own creation? You may think he's an idiot Cortex, but he will always defeat you."

"Always is a strong claim, Coco. What will Subject C1, or 'Crash,' do now that I have a captive to lure him away from the Time Twisting Machine? All I have to do is threaten your life, and he will kneel before me. And I do not think he is an idiot, Coco. His inability to speak is merely a defect is his creation, besides that, he is as capable of leading my armies as he was when he was still loyal to me. But unfortunately love caused his programming to break."

"It's because family's do anything for each other, Cortex. Something you'll never understand."

"Oh what, you think I don't know how families operate? That I never had one? Your time isolated on these islands has made you ignorant to the rest of the world. You might have been created with an extreme intelligence regarding computers and machines, but you're the one who's oblivious to the real world. I grew up on that world, the world you've never seen. The humans you've never met, the people I've yet to conquer. I understand all too well how families work. How much I loved my mother and father before they were murdered. How my dirt poor brother raised me as best he could before he scrounged up enough money to ship me off to an academy, fulfilling my father's final wish. Don't judge me because of your embarrassingly crude sense of right and wrong, bandicoot! You prevent me from conquering the world, yet you don't even know anything about the world you're supposedly trying to save. Its hell, I can promise you that. People murder each other in droves and reason the murders of others as cause to murder even more. The world is fractured, divided, cruel, and without hope. Only leadership, a total authoritarian government can prevent the sins of man from destroying each other."

"Like you're somehow the victim here, Cortex. I'm held here against my will as you threaten to kill my brother, and you have the audacity to preach to me about how little I know of right and wrong!"

"Oh I have the right to preach! What I said is still true, even though your too arrogant with self-righteous bullshit to understand, little bandicoot! And again you ignore the entire world and place you and your brother's freedom ahead of everything, even after what I just told you. You don't care about anything but your brother and yourself, but how could you knowing nothing but these islands? You may think I'm a mad, evil scientist, but that's because you haven't met true monsters."

"You're right, Cortex. I am arrogant. I have never seen the rest of the world nor have I met other humans besides N-Gin and N-Tropy. But that doesn't change the fact that you're a cruel, heartless, evil man who doesn't give a damn about others, no matter how much you try to convince yourself your twisted ambitions will better humanity. And my brother and I will save the rest of the world from you!"


	3. I Loved Him, So I Named Him

**Chapter 3: I Love Him, so I Named Him.**

Crash let go of the tiny purple claw in his hand and stood up from his kneeling position. He continued to look at the endearing yet potentially dangerous little Dragon in front of him. The young Dragon also continued to stare at Crash inquisitively, observing and learning about him. Crash decided to clean off both the table where the large egg was resting in pieces and the baby Dragon of the embryonic fluid which clung to his scaly skin... He didn't mind the warm water surprisingly, and held still while Crash removed the thin, white, viscus fluid from his body. Afterwards, Crash discarded the pieces of the Dragon egg, keeping only one of the larger pieces for memory's sake. After the young Dragon dried, Crash brought him back to the living room and sat on the couch. He remained on Crash's lap and fascinatedly fidgeted with Crash's jeans.

How does one care for a Dragon? What will I feed him? How large will he grow? Will he become more aggressive as he ages? As nervous as Crash was about this Dragon, he became at ease when the he fell asleep, with a rhythmic sound of calm breathing and the rising and falling of his chest. A flying, apex predator that can breathe fire is sleeping on my lap, but right now he was almost completely helpless. Crash began to think of what this Dragon would be like when he grew up. Would act like a domesticated pet, or would he be independent. Sitting on my lap now, he was cute and harmless, but who knew how long that would last. Would he try to kill me when he's able to? Would he see me as prey or as family? The way he looks at me, the way he trusts and depends on me, I want it not to be true, but I can't really be sure. The thought of how intelligent this Dragon could be ran across Crash's mind again. Those thieves stole treasure from the "Dragon Realms." This implied that Dragons were both sociable creatures (since they all lived in one place) and had a sense of wealth. Even now, this Dragon seemed to have complete motor control over his legs, along with being able to spit out fire, and when I reached out my hand to him as a comforting gesture, he mirrored the action. He saw what I was doing and did it himself, literally seconds after hatching. Maybe someday he'll start talking, too, Crash joked to himself.

I need to name him, Crash then thought. He was no longer just some animal, but a part of his family. Do Dragons have names? Would he react to a name I give him? But as Crash thought of this, he remembered that he himself couldn't speak and felt really dumb. But he needed a name nevertheless. Something related to fire possibly. "Flame?" no, way to generic. Although I did end up nicknaming that young polar bear cub I rescued Polar. But that was because I never planned on raising the cub in my living room. Crash caught himself in mid-though; He's part of my family? I'm planning on raising him!? I need to bring him to the past and never see him again. He doesn't belong here and I'm doing him a disservice by keeping him in the present. But subconsciously, Crash just couldn't accept this rational thought. He needs me, Crash irrationally convinced himself. Sparx, Sparky? He's not a lap dog, no need to add an affectionate "y" at the end of his name. His name should be more subtle. _Pyro_? Latin somehow seemed appropriate, but _pyro_ didn't sound right. He breathed fire; he wasn't fire himself (I'm back to square one here). Hmm… breathing fire - _spiro_ was Latin for breath. _Spyro_ … Spyro. Crash decided to stick with it. He inhaled deeply and attempted to say it aloud. Talking wasn't impossible for Crash, it just really bothered his throat and ended up sounding really high pitched and annoying to anyone else listening. Plus the vibrations caused almost unbearable scratching and itching in his vocal cords. To talk required concentration for even basic sounds. "Sp – I… Ro."

Spyro woke up upon hearing the strange sounds coming from Crash, and lifted his head to face Crash. Spyro it is then. Spyro seems to like the name, or he's annoyed with me that I woke him up. Although naming things isn't really my specialty. My _label_ of Subject C1 was given to me by Cortex, and then I was named Crash by my sister Coco… She's been gone for a very long time. Something was wrong. She must be in trouble. Crash gently lifted Spyro from his lap, waking up the tired Dragon again and placed him on a pillow, where he fumbled around for a couple of seconds before falling asleep again. I'm going to have to ask Aku-Aku where she is.

Conversing with Aku-Aku, although it was completely mental, was just as frustrating as actually speaking for Crash. He entered you mind and knew what you knew, while you ended up being lost in a confusing headache. But his wisdom had come in handy ever since he found this artifact on a beach one day. Supposedly Aku-Aku isn't really just an artifact that you drape around your neck. He is a spirit that inhabits the "tiki mask" shaped pendent and that is about as much as Crash new about him.

Crash searched around the house until he found the necklace, and draped it around his neck. The calm, intrusive, soothing, and overpowering voice echoed in his mind.

˂Your sister is currently on the third island.˃

The third island? Cortex's old castle. Why would he come back to the N Sanity Islands?

˂Your heart and mind are split between your sister and Spyro.˃

˂What do you mean, I love my sister. It's just that I can't leave Spyro here while I try to rescue her.˃

˂You're concern for the Dragon stems from the fact that you love it like a son. A child you could never have, and one whom you fear Coco will want sent away.˃

This mask reads me like a book. Sometimes I just want to through it in the ocean.

˂Getting rid of me will not solve the problem.˃

I was just a thought. Impulses are normal for flesh beings, as well as thinking irrationally.

˂Well, what am I supposed to do Aku-Aku? And I'm talking about rescuing my sister while not leaving Spyro at the house alone.˃

˂I can induce a temporary coma upon the infant Dragon that will cause him to sleep indefinitely until I revive him. Though you cannot leave him in such a comatose state for too long, or he will die of starvation. You would need to be back here soon.˃

I could work with that.

˂Coco would be right. It is unnatural to disturb the time continuum in any fashion, yet current events cause for you to meddle with time and retrieve Crystals. However, bringing that Dragon here was a mistake and not your right to do.˃

˂I saved his life, Aku-Aku. Was I supposed to let him die˃

˂You were not to interfere. But you acted with good intentions, and for that I commend you. When you learn the truth about your actions, however, you will find the courage to let him go.˃

And with that, Aku-Aku went silent. Crash was free to his own thoughts without intrusion. Crash took Aku-Aku's advice in putting Spyro in a deep sleep. Then he made his way to the third island. Cortex needs to learn not to mess with my family.


	4. They're Just Slaves of Evil Intentions

**Chapter 4: They're Just Slaves of Evil Intention** s

The Sorceress was the immortal and the all-powerful tyrant of the Forgotten Realms. She had murdered millions that had risen to oppose her. Her mastery of magic has led to the extinction of numerous species scattered throughout Avalar, including the Dragonflies. Her hatred of Dragons, seething in her ever since her father was murdered by one, is what ignited her campaign against peace in the world. Her father, a Dinopotamus like the Sorceress herself, was a master of the same black magic his daughter now wields. He was to be the biggest threat to Dragons that they had ever encountered. He led his people to challenge the Dragon's claim to the entire world. After countless deaths and a decade long war, he was defeated solely because a rare purple Dragon, who was born a little more than a thousand years before Spyro, rose to defeat him. In the grueling battle, the Dragon barely escaped with his life, fulfilling the wishes of the Elder Dragons who taught him what he needed to defeat The Sorcerer of the Dinopotamuses, and in the process murdered the father of Dionaca.

"My only child, Dionaca," The Sorcerer whispered to his daughter, "avenge me. With my final breath, I bestow upon you all the power I have. Use it. Kill ever last damn Dragon. Make them… make them pay for what they did to our race."

The power surged into the Sorceress' young body as tears dripped from her eyes. Her father passed away, and she found her purpose. 

* * *

Cortex was born to two poor parents as part of a traveling circus. His father was forever in debt to the Circus owner, who profited of his business while those under his control suffered. Cortex was born with a rare genetic defect, which up to this point in human history had never affected another person. A key in the human genome which blocks the ability of the human brain to function at peak capacity has been turned off in his mind. As a consequence, he has the mind of a one year old… with experience. His brain will always continue to grow; it will never stop making new neurons and form new connections. Instead of having a limited capacity like any normal human, with patterns forming during early in their development, his brain will always add new capacities and new patterns as needed. This defect makes him unquestionably the smartest human on the planet.

This great intellect comes at a great personal coast, however. The deathly side effect of his rare genetic defect is human growth. Cortex's head continues to grow, his skull never fully closed after birth like a normal human child's would. And Cortex's body also continues to grow. Unlike other humans whose growth locks down and stops at puberty, Cortex never stops growing. He never had puberty and doesn't have an adult height. There is only a height at the time of death, when his heart gives out or his spine collapses.

As a child, he was remarkably small. He understood English at 10 months, and could speak it at 1 year, 4 months. He had a photographic memory. He could think of more than one thing at once. It was this remarkable brilliance that allowed him to invent time travel, genetic manipulation, and gave his poor father hope for his family. Cortex's father borrowed, stole, and begged for any money and saved it to get his youngest son into Australia's finest private school, Madame Amberley's Academy. For his thievery, Cortex's father and his mother were killed by the owner of the circus they worked for, orphaning Cortex and his older brother. Although Cortex's brother had received instructions before his father died to use the money he had gathered to get Cortex into the Academy. The thing was Cortex knew his parents were going to be murdered. He deduced the fact before it was going to happen, and he didn't act on it. It was the last time fear ever impacted his decisions. He blamed everyone but himself for his parent's death; he grew cold and distant, and gradually hated everyone at the school he had been abandoned at, for the relatively retarded students that made fun of him and his head. He knew he was smarter than them, than his teachers, than the professors. His intelligence wasn't unnoticed, and he quickly distinguished as the smartest student at the Academy, earning even more resentment from his supposed intellectual childhood peers. One student whom Cortex pissed off enough sought to punish him physically for his arrogance. He cornered him into a bathroom with his gang, but Cortex goaded him to fight alone. Cortex killed him; his mentality, "end the battle with maximum force, to prevent the bully from ever fighting him again." Cortex would have been expelled, if one professor, Dr. Nefarious Trophy, hadn't kept him at the school. He knew who Cortex was. He knew what was different about him. Cortex's mother and Tropy's half-sister was the illegitimate child of his father, Anton Tropy. He was a world renounced geneticist until his adultery scandal ruined his career. But that old man was nefarious in more ways than one. He also conducted illegal experiments with human intelligence, and altered the unfertilized eggs of his unofficial daughter so that they contained a recessive gene, "Anton's Key," which would give all of her children a fifty percent chance of having hyper intelligence and an early death. Cortex's father had never assembled enough money to get Cortex into Madame Amberley's Academy. Nefarious Tropy took care of that. He was so intrigued by his father's work that he needed to see if he could save his nephew's life. He explained Cortex's condition to him, and moved him away from speculation of his murder to a remote archipelago off the coast of Australia and sought ways to keep Cortex alive. When science failed them, they turned to a rumor of Power Crystals that they can grant creatures immortality. So Cortex attempted to use his group of mutated upon animals, most of which were the test subjects of experiments attempting to see if "Anton's Key" could be reversed or stopped, to gather the Crystals scattered thought the world and give himself a way to live, for he didn't have much time left. Of all the creature's Cortex rapidly evolved and bred, only Subject C3, (or as she identifies as: Coco Bandicoot) successfully kept "Anton's Key" while cutting off their growth acceleration after puberty. Both she and her brother would eventually stand in the way of Cortex's world domination, and preventing his untimely death. 

* * *

Malefor was responsible for the Death of the Sorceress' father. He knew that the day he went to her castle and warned her of another Purple Dragon that was born. He was the Dragon the Sorceress should hate the most. She knew that Malefor was a purple Dragon that was born around the same time she was, but she never made the connection that the Dragon who killed her father was still alive. The thing was, Malefor felt somewhat ashamed of killing the Sorcerer. He was told to, by his elders that feared his power. They couldn't do it themselves, no Dragon could except their purple prodigy that could master the convexity as well as the Sorcerer could. They made him do it; they filled his head with lies and raised him to defeat the Sorceress' father. But the Elder Dragons didn't tell him everything. They never mentioned what the Power Crystals could do, how they tried to keep me from using those ancient rocks. They feared I would become a Dark Dragon. Well they were right. I was a prodigy of magic, why couldn't I live forever. What was so "immorally wrong" about that. The Dragons tried their best to keep the Power Crystals away from the Dinopotamuses because they feared they would use the magic "immorally" like I eventually did. The Elders tried to control everything. They thought themselves morally superior to every creature and Dragons self-proclaimed themselves as benign guardians of the world. To rule with compassion and understanding. But would kill anyone species that rose to challenge them, or send me to do it because they couldn't defeat their "evil" enemies. Right and wrong, sentiments for the weak! There was only a survival of the fittest. And both he and the Sorceress were the most powerful beings in existence. It was why Malefor respected her, the only other creature he did respect. Not even the latest purple dragon, which he set in motion to have murdered by the Sorceress, so that maybe she could have closure for her father's death.


	5. His Greatest Creations

**Chapter 5: His Greatest Creations**

"Subject C1 is coming, Cortex. What are you going to do about him?" Nefarious asked impatiently. He couldn't understand why Cortex held back against this creature. Sure, it was established that C1 wasn't a complete failure or an idiot; he was tactically gifted, and fared extraordinarily well in melee combat. He defeated mutated creatures twice his size by outmaneuvering them or just outsmarting them. And there was that spin attack he somehow used. Nefarious couldn't explain how he could rotate that fast and not lose consciousness from the centripetal force pushing his blood to his extremities. It had to be Cortex's pride, Nefarious assumed, that wouldn't allow him to kill the creature. He created him, he in some ways was his son, and he was successful if not loyal subordinate.

"Because Subject C1 and his sister are my legacies uncle. They alone are the most important of the mutants I ever created. C1, the first animal I ever mutated, proved that anthropomorphism was possible. And based off what I learned from him, his sister became the success I needed to prolong my life. I know that the condition I live with can be sustained. My Grandfather may have discovered the next step in human evolution, but I perfected it."

"That sentiment won't stop C1 from doing whatever it takes to free his sister. Only his sister is useful to you. Terminate Subject C1; he is no longer of any use. It's what he deserves, after what he has done to use these past three years."

"You may be right, N Tropy. However, he is protected by the Spirit of Aku-Aku."

"You of all people Cortex, a student of science, should not be fooled by mysticism and magic. It's not real."

Cortex held the talisman which contained the spirit of Uka-Uka in his hand. Although he could never convincingly explain this to Nefarious (and he never bothered), it was this spirit's idea to collect the gems. It was his influence that turned Cortex's ambitions from saving his own life to also conquering the world. Uka-Uka found within the deep recesses of Cortex's mind the desire to accomplish something grand with his life. He channeled that drive into the twisted vision he had now (or that's how Coco explained it). Through the brilliance of Cortex, he would act as Uka-Uka's vessel to cause death and destruction on the world. It was for this reason that Aku-Aku chose Crash to stop him.

"I'm going to kill C1 by myself. Face to face, man to man, father to son. Although I may be dying, I want him to know that his existence, his sister's existence, and that other bandicoot's existence was because of me, and can be taken away by me." Cortex fetched his levitation device and his weapon of choice. Nefarious could only watch. Something was different about Cortex. Plans for world domination… his grandfather created a monster, and I'm helping him because even now I'm searching for my father's approval.

˂You need to take the Crystals from C1. Learn where he's hiding them before you kill him. Use his sister to force him to talk. Take her with you when you confront C1.˃

˂Understood, Uka-Uka˃

˂With the power Crystals, you will have immortality, and the power you need to rule the world for eternity.˃

˂Yes, my master.˃

* * *

"Crash Bandicoot, for the last time, give the crystals to me!"

˂Brother, you cannot stop me from destroying this world!˃

˂That is the sole purpose of my life, Uka-Uka. The irony is that I will use a creation of your chosen slave to stop you.˃

Cortex was desperate. After Subjects C1, C2, and C3 escaped, all his research into curing himself was gone. He was running out of time and needed a solution fast to his gigantism problem. Cortex knew Nefarious was only primarily concerned about his Father's great discovery and not really concerned with Cortex's life, he knew he couldn't rely on him. It's when he discovered a power crystal on this island, along with a necklace which had an ominous looking talisman attached to it, did he turn to mysticism and magic to spare his life. It's when he allowed himself to become a slave to evil. The ambition was there, the need to do more with his life than waste away on an unheard of island, which was why Uka-Uka was able to turn Cortex into his tool to cause destruction to the world. He spoke into Cortex mind, subtly at first, but now overbearingly forced his slave to use his intellect in plans of world domination. But Cortex subconsciously knew, and maybe so did Coco, that this desire was within him all along. Cortex didn't consider himself human, and all humanity has ever caused him was pain. He had no loyalty to this species or this planet. If he could remold it in his own image, then so be it, even if that meant becoming the pawn of an evil spirit.

Coco was Cortex's greatest Creation. She was the solution to Cortex's early death, an extraordinarily brilliant mind that would not die prematurely because of gigantism. But she could never admit to being anything like Cortex, and would do anything she could to stop Cortex and his "evil plans." If only she knew, if Cortex ever told her of her true purpose for existing, of the plight he suffered, then maybe she could sympathize with him, collaborate with him and try to spare his life from death. Maybe she wouldn't have a reason to hate him. But Cortex never told her, Uka-Uka wouldn't let him. And for that, Cortex's greatest creation became his adversary. She watched as her older brother gave everything he had to stop Cortex, and barely was able to defeat him, bloody, battered, and bruised. Cortex fell down the Time Twisting Machine and landed at the base of the large machine. The large magnetic generator's that create intense fields of gravity to contain the warp fields lost power, and the machine itself began to implode. Crash rescued his sister and they both ran for their lives, Coco helping her limping brother the majority of the way.

"Crash, you're an amazing brother" Coco said out of breath once they reached the beach. Crash had both of his hands on his knees, also painting. He caught his breath before he used his hands to respond to his sister.

[I guess we won't be time traveling anytime soon, then]

"No, no we won't. And I don't think Cortex or Nefarious will be anytime soon, either."

[When we get to the house, Coco, I have something to show you. Just promise me you won't get mad.]

"Oh boy, what did you do brother?"


	6. But I love Him, Coco

**Chapter 6: But I Love Him, Coco**

"ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND!?"

Aku-Aku had revived Spyro from the deep sleep he had put him in earlier, and he was now in a defensive position, crouching to protecting himself from Crash's loud, irate sister. Coco had encouraged Crash to learn sign language after she escaped from Cortex two years ago and began to live with here brother. Crash was reluctant at first, but he got over it in time. Now he was thankful for Coco's idea, it was the only way he was going to rationalize the incredibly dangerous and seemingly moronic decision to bring a Dragon he now loves to the present.

"I understand that you rescued him while you were in the past, Crash. But bringing him to the present!? And now the Time Twisting Machine is destroyed and that Dragon is stranded here. You have to have known this was a bad idea. I know you Crash; you would never have done something this bone headed without a reason."

Crash had been trying to explain himself before she started yelling upon noticing the purple Dragon on the couch, but Coco wasn't looking at him. He started to explain himself again once she was looking at him.

[I had no choice but to bring him here. The thieves that stole Spyro took him from his home, and I could not have found out where it was. If I left him where I rescued him, he surely would never have survived. It wouldn't have been right for me to leave him so defenseless and without his parents.]

Coco was done yelling. Though she thought that Crash had made a monumentally dumb decision, there wasn't anything she could do to correct it. The Time Twister was destroyed, and what was done was done. However, Coco mind was still racing with the issue of having a deadly mythical creature in her home. What would they feed him, would he be dangerous, how will he affect the wildlife on this island? Coco ran her hand through her blond hair before looking at her brother. He was now holding Spyro on his lap and looking at the Dragon with a soft smile. He placed his hand in front of the Dragon, and he put his tiny claw on it while smiling back at Crash.

"You named it, hugh… Spyro, that's Latin for breath. How did you come up with that name?" Coco asked calmly as she sat next to her older brother.

[Well, I've been reading some of your books in the little library we have.]

"You picked the books in Latin? Since when could you read Latin?"

[I just taught myself, I guess.]

"English, Sign Language, Latin. You know, for a 'dumb' mute, you certainly know a lot of languages" Coco said jokingly.

"I… k-an ta-lk" Crash said, smiling as he tried.

Coco giggled before she asked her brother a question that was on her mind. "Can I hold Spyro, Crash?"

Crash gently lifted Spyro from his lap and Coco reached out and placed him on his lap. Spyro flapped his wings twice, startling Coco, but he settled down afterwards. Spyro looked at Coco, who appeared similar to the previous orange furry thing but had several differences as well. It puzzled him as he spotted the differences in the sounds they made, the faint scents they had, how one produced a lot more sound than the other, which didn't make him cringe like the sounds of the first. The second orange thing touched his wings and his back. The contact was soft and gentle. Spyro allowed himself to relax while he continued to observe the only living things he has ever encountered.

"I guess I can't be mad at you forever, Crash. And… Spyro is adorable."

[He was still in his egg when I brought him here. Those thieves that stole him from his home, they were delivering him to someone known as the Sorceress. I barely made it out of that prehistoric swamp with my life. Once I dragged myself home, I kept trying to convince myself that I should return him to the past, that it was the right thing to do, and that I should return him before he hatched. I knew I was potentially robbing Spyro of a normal life upon bringing him to the present, and I knew what you would think of me bringing him here in the first place. But then I watched him hatch. I looked at him and knew that this Dragon would have a special place in my heart. Even Aku-Aku, once I put him around my neck, told me so. He said I loved Spyro like… 'the son I could never have,' Coco.]

Coco stared at her brother, truly understanding him. Tawna. That's who Crash must be thinking about right now. The love of his life, the reason he risked his life in betraying Cortex. His soul mate who he would never see again.

"You've always had a special place in your heart for helpless creatures." Coco said softly to comfort her brother. She could see the sadness already starting to take over him. "It's part of your very nature, brother. You cherish all life, even more than the artificial life you think Cortex gave you. This is why you rescued Spyro and adopted him as your own son. Why you risked your life to save me today and two years ago. It's why you helped Tawna escape from Cortex's castle three years ago. Your selfless devotion to others, it's why I admire you."

Coco leaned towards her brother, and he leaned towards her, hugging his sister while he let pent up emotion go.

"I mu-is her… Ko-co."

"I miss her, too, Crash."

Spyro looked at these two orange things hug each other (a gestor he saw for the first time) as a liquid escaped from the first orange thing. Another quirk of these two he just learned about. He would remember it. So small, so fragile, so young, but already learning. Becoming the Dragon he was always destined to be, just a hundred thousand years too late to be of any use to those who needed him. Now part of a family that loved him as much as those who would have loved him had he not been stolen and then were murdered by the hands of the Sorceress.


	7. The Power of Words

**Chapter 7: The Power of Words**

I had a name. The word was said often, usual spoken at me, and eventually this sound attached itself to me. My identification, my… self. As time passed and Spyro grew and matured, he began to understand the two orange creatures living with him more and more. They also had names, Crash and Coco. They, like how he learned to, responded to those names that defined them. The power of words was fascinating. They label things, gave meaning to concepts and ideas, could clarify or abstract, Command or question. Coco spoke these words, and Crash listened. But Spyro remembered the first word he ever heard, his name: Spyro. It came from the male, Crash. He has said it after Spyro emerged from the dark place. At that time, he only remembered the pronunciation of that word. He didn't know anything about that word until later.

Spyro was a Dragon. This word confused him. It labeled him, but it didn't define who he was, at least not directly. Coco only used that word when identifying Spyro in an indirect way. Eventually, Spyro deduced that this was the type of being that he was. Because Dragon had a similar meaning to it like Bandicoot did. Crash and Coco were bandicoots. And they were family. Like the word love, family had a very significant and deep meaning attached to it. These two words profoundly changed the emotions of Crash or Coco when used. They brought up feelings of tenderness, adoration, and trust between them when Coco used them towards Crash. And then Spyro learned of family structure. Brother and sister, that's what Crash and Coco were to each other. But Spyro also found the words father and mother. Were Crash and Coco his parents? Spyro assumed so, but this conflicted with what he was. He was a Dragon and Crash and Coco wereBandicoots. Spyro was certainly part of their family, but something bothered him about the physical distinction between them. Besides two different words labeling them as different, they looked different from him. They loved him and he loved them, too, but why wasn't he a Bandicoot and why weren't they Dragons? It's why Spyro was determined to ask them. He was learning about language, but he wanted to use it to talk to his father and mother. Spyro practiced talking by himself, making sure he could pronounce words correctly and intelligibly. It was hard at first, and there was no way of knowing whether he was talking correctly. He used Coco as his coach, repeating things she had said and tried to mimic the speed, pronunciation, and flow of her speech. After a couple of weeks practicing and perfecting what he wanted to ask Crash and Coco, he waited until they were both gather on the beach. As he approached however, he could hear they were talking. So he waited, seeing if he could gather information from Coco talking to Crash. How Coco understood the things Crash was somehow communicating to her was still an enigma to Spyro.

"Todays the anniversary, isn't it Crash? Seeing you besides this shore confirms it."

[Neither of us ever knew our birthdays. I just thought I could 'celebrate' the day I lost her.]

"Crash, it's been two years since she died. Why do you do this to yourself? Force yourself to remember the pain you experienced when you lost her? You fixate on that day, you can't let go."

[I don't want to forget her, Coco.]

"You don't have to forget her, Crash. You just need to move on. She wasn't your only family. I hoped, and still do hope, that I will be enough for you overcome your grief."

[Coco, that's not fair.]

"It sounds worse than what I actually meant. I will always be here for you, for as long as we're together. A shoulder to cry on, a friend to laugh with, a sister to love. Tawna meant all these things to you and more, and even though she's gone, I hope to be those same things, too, minus the… you know."

Crash allowed himself a chuckle before staring at the horizon again, listening to the waves crash on the beach before him.

"Here, I made this for you."

Coco handed something to Crash, and he removed a paper covering the object. Crash stared at it, water dripping from his eyes. Spyro had seen this before. Since then he learned what crying meant. Had Coco somehow saddened Crash?

"It-s b…eu-tfl" Crash tried to say. Beautiful… Spyro had heard that word describe the island. Beautiful didn't mean island, it instead described all that was nice and pleasing to look at about the surroundings. Was what Crash was holding as beautiful as the island? It must have been; Crash didn't speak frequently, and the moments he reserved to were not wasted.

"The portrait took me about a week to perfect. I hope it looks just like you remember her."

Crash set the portrait to his side and leaned over to hug his sister.

"I luv y…ooh" Crash said sobbing up. Coco and embraced her brother and shed a tear as well. This was exactly like the time they hugged after he emerged from the dark place. Now Spyro understood what was happening here. Love… Family… something he was a part of. He walked over to where his father and mother were standing and waited next to them. Crash let go of Coco upon noticing Spyro standing behind them. Coco turned to notice him as well. Spyro abandoned the questions he had for them today, instead he wanted to be a part of this moment as well.

"I love you both, too." Spyro uttered. This was the first time he spoke in front of Crash or Coco. He hopped he said the words right. He must of, because his words evoked even more tears from Crash, as well as a smile. Opposite emotions simultaneously displayed, it's what confused and fascinated Spyro about words and how they applied to the real world. He sat down next to his father and mother as the sun set in the distance.


	8. Sparx the Dragonfly

**Chapter 8: Sparx the Dragonfly**

There since the dawn of both species existed a special consummation between Dragons and Dragonflies. Dragonflies were a conduit of Earthly magic, while Dragons were wielders of Earthly magic. However, the relationship between a purple Dragon and their Dragonfly was even more unique. Whenever a golden Dragonfly would land on a Dragon egg, the Elder Dragons would know another purple Dragon was to be born, the quintessence of the Dragon spirit, courage, and ability. The bond between a purple Dragon and their Dragonfly is more than just loyalty. The Dragonfly acts as both an amplifier of the Dragon's magic, as well as their protector. A golden Dragonfly acts as the guardian of its purple Dragon's life. To ensure that he or she is never killed before it's natural life ends. No golden Dragonfly had ever needed to make the ultimate sacrifice except one: Aurea the Dragonfly. She willingly had to give up her life for her purple Dragon she was chosen to protect.

The battle between Malefor and the Sorcerer was that saddening time. Losing his Dragonfly at his age was hard for Malefor, and some could argue it was the beginning of his disconnection to the Dragon community. He began to question his elder Dragons, why they had needed him solely to murder the dangerous Sorcerer (or how they phrased it, stop him) and why only he could accomplish this. He in his adolescence sought ways to use Power Crystals to revive the Dragonfly that accompanied him since birth, his best friend. That was when Malefor began to learn the true power of the Crystals, why the Sorcerer had campaigned to have total control over them, and why his elders' insisted on governing their use.

This is where the Sorceress came into the picture. The Elder Dragons were warned of her father rising to wreak havoc on the world, and trained Malefor to defeat him. What they could have never anticipated was the Sorcerer's daughter succeeding her father in power, and more importantly in anger and rage. She sought not control over the world (well, not at first), but vengeance upon all Dragons for executing her father. And the only Dragon at the time that stood a chance at defeating her had now forgone their control, hating and resenting the Elder Dragons for what they made him do and the Dragonfly it coast him, renouncing his loyalty to all Dragons and essentially sought the same power the Sorcerer and his daughter would eventually crave. Malefor's quest never did bring back Aurea; it instead corrupted him and turned him into a vindictive and maleficent creature of hatred and evil. The Sorceress, unopposed, led her people for a war over the Forgotten Realms. Dragons from all over the world now were engaged in a bloody war against the Dinopotamuses, and although the Dragon's effort to have good triumph over evil was courageous and brave, they eventually were defeated by the Sorceress. The surviving Dragons were forced to flee to six islands that are the Dragon Realms, where they hid for a thousand years, waiting in fear and in shame for not being able to protect the world from the malice of the Sorcerer or his daughter. Dragons formed an impenetrable magic barrier keeping her out, and prayed that one day another purple Dragon would be born, so that they could use him or her to defend their culture and heritage from the wrath of the Sorceress.

Malefor remained in the Forgotten Realm, not hiding from the Sorceress, but instead demonstrated his command of magic by (like the Sorceress) becoming immortal, and dared her to try to kill him. The one Dragon who matched her command of magic, the one Dragon she couldn't intimidate, couldn't overpower, couldn't kill. Because of how Malefor's existence tormented her, she searched of ways to defeat this legendary purple Dragon. This was how the Sorceress became aware of the legends surrounding Dragonflies, how they were a vital part of Dragon's manipulation of Earthly Magic, so she set out to have all of them systematically killed. Because there were no more Dragons to defend them, they were slaughtered. Aurea's husband, Ardescere, did everything in his power to hide and protect their son from the Sorcerer. His golden glowing son, who someday would aid another purple Dragon against the monster now destroying his race, he hid from the Sorceress. There was nothing the Dragonflies could do to stop the genocide of their kind, but maybe someday another purple Dragon would be born and avenge their species. Sparx would have to wait a thousand years for Spyro to be born. He almost emerged from his perpetual sleep, until the egg disappeared. He would then have to wait a hundred thousand more years, until Spyro was born inside the home of a time traveling bandicoot that inadvertently saved Spyro from the Sorceress. His wait finally over, Sparx patiently waited until he could make the long journey to a remote archipelago to meet the purple Dragon he was supposed to serve as a loyal friend and loving protector.


	9. The Spirit Aku-Aku

**Chapter 9: The Spirit Aku-Aku**

Subject C1, or Crash as he identified himself in his heart later on, found his tiki mask on the beach of one of the Wampa Islands. Crash was a lost soul, without purpose and struggling to survive the danger the monster who created him presented. In him, Aku-Aku, among the uncertainty and fear, also sensed an infallible sense of loyalty and courage. He would act selflessly, if the cause was something he believed in. Aku-Aku at first was adamant about putting his trust, and by extension, his faith in this creature. He was a creation, his sentience manufactured by a sick and demented mind that would eventually fall victim to his evil counterpart, Uka-Uka. But even though his life was synthetic and not naturally conceived, Crash found his own path because of his love for his family. He was so loyal to his fellow mutated bandicoots, he would betray his own creator to spare their lives. It's because of how much he cherished life, that Aku-Aku put his faith in this odd creature to stop Uka-Uka, who had found such a dangerous and ambitions man to do his evil bidding. Through Dr. Cortex, Uka-Uka could use him to gather the legendary Power Crystals and destroy all life on the planet, like how the Sorcerer and the Sorceress had done millennia ago. Which is what made Crash's rescue of a certain baby Dragon all the more suspicious to Aku-Aku.

The reign of Dragons and the reign of Man never intersected, but their discovery of Earthly Magic was the common thread between the two. The Dragons through the spirit of the Dragonflies which were natural conduits of magic, and Humans though the tools they created and the spirits they identified. Aku-Aku was an ancient spirt, who at one point was a man. So was his literal brother, Uka-Uka. They were the first who continued the passage of magic from the Dragons to Humans. Aku-Aku the spirit of order who adopted the Dragon's form of magic; Uka-Uka the spirit of chaos who adopted the Dinopotamus form of magic.

This is the burden of magic. It can either cause prosperity to those who wield it, or destruction to those who weaponized it. Which thus was the fate of the Dragons and the Dinopotamus who waged war with each other so long ago. Both their species eventually fell. Tragic as it was, as unfortunate and undeserving as it was for the Dragons who tried to live peacefully, evil took root in the hearts of the Sorcerer and the Sorceress who set their lives out to kill their rivals. This was what was so troubling about Crash's rescue of a Dragon. They were all supposed to be dead. What was even more troubling was that Spyro was a purple Dragon. The last purple Dragon, Malefor, had defeated the Sorcerer but then succumbed to the same evil that ravaged his opponent. But what if Malefor wasn't the last purple Dragon? What if the Dragon Spyro rescued was born after him?

˂Coco would be right. It is unnatural to disturb the time continuum in any fashion, yet current events cause for you to meddle with time and retrieve Crystals. However, bringing that Dragon here was a mistake and not your right to do.˃

˂I saved his life, Aku-Aku. Was I supposed to let him die˃

˂You were not to interfere. But you acted with good intentions, and for that I commend you. When you learn the truth about your actions, however, you will find the courage to let him go.˃

Aku-Aku went silent and ignored Crash, for something had come to his attention. A magical source like none other he had sensed before. It reached out to him. The familiarity of the power, it was what once the Dragon's conduits to Earthly Magic. A Dragonfly. Aku-Aku knew this because, like his ability with Crash's mind, he sensed the Dragonfly's presence and understood him, as it did the same with him. There was nothing to hide and no secrets to keep.

˂I've come to guard Spyro.˃

˂Your slumber has been long and valiant, but in vain.˃

˂I'm not one to question the Fates, but it does seem strange how our fates have intertwined, along with Crash and Spyro's, a hundred thousand years from my creation. That the Power Crystals could be so powerful as to allow the distortion of time itself.˃

˂You know where I am? Good, come see Spyro with your own eyes. And maybe the Fate's will be kind enough to allow our chosen heroes to have a valiant purpose.˃

˂So you think it's possible for Spyro to save his kind?˃

˂If he wishes to. The only question is will he want to. I fear his Crash's love for the creature will eventually impact Spyro's decision.˃

˂I can understand. And I do think the decision should be his. I'll support whatever decision Spyro chooses.˃

˂When you can, make the long journey to my location. Until then, god speed, Sparx the Dragonfly. May the Fates be kind indeed.˃

˂As with you, Spirit of Order: Aku-Aku.˃


	10. My Son, My Friend, Spyro the Dragon

**Chapter 10: My Son, My Friend, Spyro the Dragon**

 _"I love you both, too."_

Sitting there, crying tears of joy, Crash thought back to what Aku-Aku said about Spyro. _˂You love him like the son you can never have.˃_ Crash hadn't understood fully of what he meant until Spyro said his first five words. I love Spyro like a son because of Tawna's death. Subconsciously, I imagined Spyro, helpless in his egg about a year and a half ago, as the child Tawna and I never had. Aku-Aku of course saw through the veil in my head and stated the truth to me directly, but I never comprehended just how literal Aku-Aku's statement was until my son sat next to me on the anniversary of Tawna's death.

I'll have to tell him now, tell him that I'm not his father and that he's not really a part of my family, even though to me it will feel like I'm lying. It would be like tearing my own arm off, but it's the right thing to do, to tell him the truth. That I took Spyro from his time, the life he has now is not the one he was supposed to have, and brought him to my home instead. I just hope he understands; I hope he can forgive me for lying to him all these years.

And then Crash started having the sneaking suspicion that Spyro already knew. The difference was subtle, but Spyro stopped calling him dad or father and just called him Crash. He regarded him less and less like his caretaker and started to act more independent. He didn't ignore Crash or like him any less, he just became less reliant on him. He was happy without him. Coco and Spyro began to hang out more frequently. The sciences and vastness of Coco's intelligence and the studies she preoccupied herself with on this boring yet tranquil island intrigued Spyro to no end. And in time, Spyro essentially became her assistant to the things she was working on.

"It's freaky sometimes just how much like a bandi… just how human Spyro is sometimes." Coco said to Crash while they were eating together. Coco was probably going to suggest how much like a bandicoot Spyro was, but then remembered that they themselves were modeled after humans. Coco and Crash sometimes forgot that fact. Spyro was out exploring the island. He had recently begun flying and was taking the opportunity to venture the skies of the Wampa islands. "Ever since he taught himself how to speak, I've seen how fast he picks up on concepts and ideas. Could you imagine what the rest of the Dragons were like all those millennia ago?"

Coco's comment bothered Crash, simply because it reminded him of what he did to Spyro. Earlier, it was easy enough just to remind himself that he had rescued Spyro from certain death and did the only appropriate thing in bringing him to his home and out of danger. But now that Crash had time to think about it, it was harder to convince himself that he had done the right thing after all. If he had tried, even with the injury to his stomach, he could have found Spyro's home and parents. He could have done something to bring Spyro to his true home. But now it was impossible to bring him back because the Time Twisting Machine was destroyed during his final encounter with Dr. Cortex.

But what was the problem? Spyro seemed happy enough. No, that wasn't entirely true. He would never see another Dragon again; he would never have children of his own. He was the last of his kind and would die alone. And I don't even have the courage to tell him what I did to him. Crash knew it now. I still want that innocent, helpless Dragon that could rest on my lap, where I could look at him and see how much I mattered in his life, blissfully unaware of the great wrong I did to him until now.

"Crash, what's wrong?" Crash hadn't replied to Coco's comment, lost instead in his thoughts.

[Nothing.]

"Come on now, don't lie to me. I know when you're anxious or depressed. It's written all over your face and droopy ears." Sometimes Crash hated just how much his facial features revealed his emotions. A guess it's a disadvantage of having prehensile, long ears. Although the excellent hearing was a good enough tradeoff… maybe.

[Coco, I want to tell Spyro the truth about his past.]

"Well what are you waiting for, Crash? Sheesh, what, were you waiting for me to do it? You brought him to the future; you're the one who he loved first, so you should break the news, and soon." Her brisk answer surprised Crash. And pointing out that he may have waited too long was just another reminder of just how much of a coward he'd been.

[I'm… nervous about telling him.]

"Well, I can understand why you apprehensive of telling Spyro the truth. You fear it he will be angry with you, or it will distance yourself from him more. But you know and I know it's the right thing to do. And honestly, I think Spyro already knows, or at least is suspicious. He really is smart, Crash. Just tell him, I'm sure he'll understand."

So Coco could also read his thoughts like Aku-Aku could. And if I threw her into the ocean, she'd just swim back. [I just feel guilty Coco. Guilty for bringing Spyro here and for not telling him that I did. And I'm afraid of what he'll think of me when I tell him. Part of me doesn't regret my decision, for I love him too much to feel otherwise, but I also know it was selfish of me… the decision I made.]

"Well both 'parts' of you are correct brother. Find the courage to tell Spyro the truth. It's the right thing to do, and have confidence that Spyro loves you enough to forgive you. I know he does. You might think that because he's less reliant on you that he loves you less, but that can't be farther from the truth. Crash, you'll always hold a special place in his heart because in more ways than not, you are his father. All Spyro's doing is growing up, something you would have learned and experienced if you and Tawna ever had a child. It's just that Spyro's growing up incredibly fast, so fast that you felt you didn't have enough of his unconditional love and devotion. But don't hold that against him Crash. Embrace it, and let Spyro be your best friend instead of your only son."

Coco reached out and held her brother as he shed a tear. "Since when have I ever been such an emotional wreck," Crash thought to himself. Hopefully I don't cry in front of Spyro, sons shouldn't have to see their father's cry, telling their sons that they were never their father in the first place.

* * *

Crash waited in front of his house, listening to the waves gently crash on the shore as the sun set in the distance. Spyro landed on the beach behind Crash, walking up beside him once he landed, and greeted Crash.

"Hey Crash. Awesome day isn't it?"

"Ye-s, b…eu-tfl. K… kan we t…tal-k?"

"Well I don't know, can you?" Crash allowed himself to chuckle at Spyro's jest. He wanted this to be as painless as possible for himself, though he had no control over how this would feel for Spyro.

"M-ay we?" Spyro also laughed at Crash joke of correcting the grammar of his question instead of becoming annoyed at him for pointing out his horrible speech.

[I want to talk about you Spyro. Of how I first came to know you.]

"What, you mean when I emerged from my egg. You already showed me the fragment. What else is there to know? You're not going to talk about my conception, are you?"

Crash sighed audibly before rubbing his hand on the top of his head. Spyro must have sensed Crash's discomfort, for he didn't speak afterwards.

[I want to talk about how you came to be a part of our family.]

"Alright, I'm listening… well, watching."

Crash allowed himself a smile before continuing. [Coco and I are… not your birth parents.]

"Well that's a relief, brothers and sisters shouldn't also be mothers and fathers. If you and Coco… eloped, your inbreed children might look as terrifyingly deformed as I appear compared to you two."

[Coco said you would already know.]

"Coco knows a lot of things. I can see why you let her boss you around even though she's your younger sister. You know, the day I first spoke to you and Coco, I was planning on asking you about my parentage. I had spent so much time practicing my speech in preparation, but I decided not to ask after seeing you and Coco sitting together on the beach consoling in each other because of Tawna."

Crash looked away from Spyro and stared at the horizon. Spyro took the opportunity to sit down close to Crash and watch the sunset with him.

"So, where are my real parents?"

[Hard to say, I never met them.]

"Well how did you 'meet' me then?" Spyro asked confused.

[When you were still in your egg, you were stolen from your parents by thieves. I happened to encounter them by accident, and attempted to rescue you once I overheard that they had stolen you. In the altercation, I was seriously wounded, but managed to escape and brought you here.]

"So… my parents are still out there somewhere, along with the other Dragons?" Spyro seemed genuinely sad, which was what Crash feared. But I still had to tell him the whole truth before I could be concerned with what he thought of me.

[That's the thing, Spyro. When I brought you here to my home, I didn't just bring you here; I also brought you forward in time. It's hard to explain and harder to believe, but Cortex, if you remember Coco explaining him to you, had built a time machine to recover the Power Crystals scattered throughout the world during the times where their locations were last known. The particular Crystals that I went back in time for was hundreds of thousands of years in the past. Every Dragon that ever lived died so long ago. Your family, your kind, they are all gone. You are the last Dragon; you will never see another one again, all because I was too selfish to bring you back to the past before it was too late. I'm… sorry Spyro. Sorry for what I took from you.]

Crash began to tear up a little. A great burden had been lifted of his shoulders, but at the same time had to face the decision he made and the consequences it had on Spyro. Spyro meanwhile was still processing the information and the magnifications of what Crash told him. As he did, he looked at Crash who at one point he regarded as his father; torn apart at what hid did to who was once his son. "He's more upset about it than I am" Spyro thought.

"Well Crash," Spyro said as he put his front paw on Crash's should, causing him to look at him, "I guess both of us are the last and only of our kind. It's one thing we do have in common. And even though you may not have given me life, thank you for saving it." Although Crash rarely thought about it, he and Coco were indeed the only two of their kind. When they died, their new species would die with them. Crash allowed himself to relax. "Why does Coco have to know everything?" Crash thought to himself as he now sat next to his friend.

[I should have tried everything I could have done to find your parents before the Time Twisting Machine was destroyed.]

"It's going to suck being the only Dragon, Crash, but at least I'll have a family to spend my miserable lonely life with." Spyro held out his front paw in front of Crash, and Crash grabbed it and they shook hands, like they had first done almost five years ago. Then the handshake turned into a tearful hug, before they both went inside to see what Coco had prepared for dinner.


	11. N-Gin

**Chapter 11: N-Gin**

His master was dead. His mentor, his father, his purpose. THEY TOOK HIM FROM ME!

N-Gin never knew his parents. He was an orphan for as long as he could remember. The orphanage which he had spent the majority of his life at was a neglected dump which didn't meet any requirements to raise children in, but no one cared enough to do anything about it. The place was barely kept running by the nuns who volunteered their time to care for the abandoned and dying children there, possibly so they could keep the children alive long enough to baptize them and prevent their souls from being dammed to hell. N-Gin (he never used the name the nuns gave him, and couldn't remember it now anyway) was horrified by the notion that he could be dammed to hell for eternity because he was never baptized. The small arguments he had with the nuns never got anywhere, and he couldn't believe there was an all-powerful God that punished him by making him stare death in the face. When he passed out one day, the nuns took him to a rundown clinic, but even that understaffed and underequipped place could recognize the symptoms N-Gin had. The cancer had already spread to his brain. They gave him less than six months to live. Even if the nuns could afford to keep N-Gin in that horrible hospital, it wouldn't have helped. So they took him back to the orphanage, and prayed for him. He had already been baptized, so they asked that the Lord have mercy on him and allows him to pass as painlessly as possible. Their prayer's must not have been answered, because he was in agony for months, as the rouge cells in his body waged war on his life.

N-Gin stumbled his way to the outskirts of a large school that about a thirty minute walk from the orphanage. He was somewhat successful when he begged for food in this area. Sometimes he asked himself what was the point, as little time as he had left, he shouldn't be wasting it here. But his stomached screamed out him, and the harsh winter was making things worse at the orphanage. And besides, it was as cold out here as it was at the orphanage, and there was a slim chance he could get enough people to pity him and give him some spare change so that he could by some food and not have to risk stealing it.

The first thirty people weren't any luck. He needed a sign, but he didn't know how to write and didn't have a piece of cardboard to write on or a marker to write with. His voice was too quiet to be heard, and most people wouldn't even spare him a second glance anyway. There was the occasional person who asked why a child his age was all alone in this weather, but all they could do was take him back to the orphanage. So all he kept asking him was for spare change, and about one and every twenty people would give him something. Today, though, he didn't have much luck, and the pain in his entire body was starting to become unbearable, and his shivering wasn't helping. Maybe I'll die finally on this sidewalk, and see if I could get into that heaven the nuns kept talking about. Two people came by, walking quickly from out of the school.

"I know of a secluded place where we can remain in isolation while we work on your condition. I'll get you up to speed on all of my father's work, and then we both can research ways to stabilize the condition or see if it's curable."

"I am a young man of incalculable genius, Nefarious. If there's a way to cure the effects of Anton's key, I will find it. The problem is do I have enough time alive to do so? And will I have access to the supplies I will need on a remote archipelago?"

"If you hadn't murdered a student here, than this wouldn't have been a problem, nephew." The rather tall man said as they both started to walk past him.

"Spare… [cough couch] Spare change?"

The nephew stopped and handed him a silver necklace with a gold pendent on int.

"Here, a recently deceased child no longer needed this."

"Come on Neo, we don't have time to mess with beggars."

"I have all the time that I have on this world thanks to your father, Nefarious, and I will use it however I please! If you forgot, I was once as poor and desperate as this kid, because your despicable grandfather had his illegitimate child hidden in a carnival so no one could find out about her. What's your name, kid?"

"Andrew. The nuns gave it to me."

"So, you're from that orphanage the kids here talk about. Nefarious, he's coming with us."

"You can't be serious."

"Dead serious. Come on, we don't have time to argue. Here kid, eat this."

Andrew took the candy bar from Cortex and followed him like he asked. Eventually he was on a private jet and they flew across the continent and proceeded to board a boat to a remote island. This was the beginning of N-Gin's new life. Cortex in his spare time from trying to save his own life spent some time on finding a cure for Andrew. Although some parts of his brain and left lung were beyond curing, portable life support systems were mounted onto his body to keep him alive. And a special virus that Neo Cortex developed swept through N-Gin's body and destroyed the cancerous cells in his body.

N-Gin owed his life to the kindness of Cortex. So when he was murdered by his own creations. N-Gin wanted to murder the two bandicoots right away, but he was stopped by a force he didn't understand. It willed him towards the wreckage of the Time Twisting machine. N-Gin made the journey to the device, which was located in a very secret and remote location. When he got there, among the rubble, he found Uka-Uka. This was that strange relic that Cortex had with him at all times. A reminder of the great man who has left me. May God have mercy on his soul, if what those nuns said were true. A man as good as Cortex should definitely have a special place in heaven, and I'll make sure his murderous creations are dammed to the worst part of hell. This was when he heard his old master's voice in his head.

* * *

Uku-Uka was able to survive the implosion of the Time Twisting Machine, but Cortex had been utterly destroyed, his atoms ripped apart as they were separated from one another by the force of the cascading wave of unstable space-time. His instrument of destruction gone, his plans ruined, his brother triumphant once again. But, in Cortex's death Uka-Uka found another servant. One as lost and angry as Cortex, who's rage burned inside of him because of his master's death. A soul who sought revenge, a soul Uka-Uka could bend to his will.

˂N-Gin˃ Uka-Uka spoke in N-Gin's mind. Apparently, this creature was associating the foreign presence in his mind as his old master somehow communicating with him from the dead. Good.

"Cortex… is that you? How… how is this possible?" N-Gin said emotionally as he held Uka-Uka in his mind.

˂I need you, N-Gin. I need you to avenge my death, to carry out my important work. I may have never had a son, but that day I rescued you in front of Madame Amberly's Academy, you became the one I would never have. Within this talisman, I'll give you the knowledge you need to continue my work, and the strength you need to avenge me. Will you do this for me, my son?˃

Uka-Uka could feel the sorrow and pain in this boy. Emotions Uka-Uka could manipulate in order to get this young boy to do his bidding. And in time, with the knowledge Uka-Uka gained from his time in Cortex's mind, he could have N-Gin reconstruct the Time Twisting Machine, and then Uka-Uka could accomplish his own goal with that glorious machine, before Aku-Aku interfered. He could go back in time and confront the creature that best harnessed Dark Magic so long ago, the one who Uka-Uka derived his form of magic from when he was just a man, and proceed to control her. The creature responsible for the destruction the Dragons, who Aku-Aku based his magic from: The Sorceress.


	12. Family Reunion

**Chapter 12: Family Reunion**

 _˂So it's really been eight years?˃_

 _˂A long time indeed. We've talked a lot since you first awakened. What my brother seems to want, and the implications it could have on the time stream, as well as what could happen if Spyro is sent back and defeats the Sorceress.˃_

 _˂It would mean the Dragons and Dragonflies would never go extinct.˃_

 _˂I also fear it means the reign of Dragons and of Man would collide. I was once a man, you know.˃_

 _˂Yes. The decision we make would have a lot of ramifications, so I'm glad we've discussed it as much as we have. Is it too much, Aku-Aku, to ask that Man and Dragon could get along?˃_

 _˂You won't find out unless you take Spyro back to the past. Because if you do, I'll potentially be wiped out from existence. You've heard of the butterfly effect, right?˃_

 _˂I'm afraid I eat butterflies, and not observe the effects they have on the world. But yes, anything you know I also know. So do you believe it was meant to be that Dragons died out and Man inhabited the world? It makes me wonder if my journey to the future caused by the great sacrifice of my parents was worth it. If guarding Spyro and helping him now return to the past will only cause the destruction of another species so that Dragons can live.˃_

 _˂You know what I know, but not what I feel, unfortunately. Yes, in some ways I'm the guardian of a creature that strives to be like a Man as I have been with good men in the past, as you are a guardian of a Dragon out of time. I do fear that Crash's meddling with the past and removing Dragon kinds only hope at defeating the Sorceress was ordained by Fate. But that also doesn't mean I think we can't choose our own fates as well. So I choose to support you in your effort, because I feel it is the right thing. If that means I no longer exist, I can come to grips with it.˃_

 _˂Thanks, Aku-Aku. Although I don't think you can speak for humanity, since almost zero percent of its population knows you exist.˃_

 _˂I've seen humanity from its dawn to now. But you're right, I can't speak for them. All I can hope for is that both species get along, like a particular orange human-ish bandicoot and his friend the Dragon.˃_

 _˂I'll be there soon. Aku-Aku.˃_

 _˂May the Fates be kind, Sparks˃_

* * *

Spyro: "Happy Birthday to Coco!"  
Coco: "Happy Birthday to Spyro."  
Spyro and Coco: "And a happy Birthday to Cra-ash. Happy birthday to all of us!"

It was Coco's idea to celebrate her and her brother's birthday on the same day Spyro hatched. If Crash was bummed because he couldn't sing along, he didn't show it. Neither Crash nor Coco knew what day they were actually "born" on, and did not know which day they were "created" on, just how many years it had been since each had escaped from Cortex's control. So that put Crash at eleven, coco at nine, and Spyro at eight years since he hatched.

"You have the ice cream, right?" Spyro asked concerned.

"Yes Spyro," Coco replied, "I have the ice cream. I know you would eat it every day if you could, but it's kind of hard to get anything besides wampa fruit and palm trees on this island."

"I could probably learn how to make the stuff if we had access to the ingredients. And if Dragons didn't have this cold, creamy concoction in the past, than I feel really sorry for them."

"Well you can gouge yourself with all the ice cream we have after we open presents. Alright Spyro, you're first." Spyro reached for what a present that was labeled to him from Crash. He unwrapped his gift, revealing two pairs of sunglasses.

"Oh sweet, these go over your eyes, right?" Spyro fumbled to grip the glasses with his front paws, And Crash helped him put them on. Crash then put on the second pair.

"Kool, w-eye-t?" Crash asked Coco as he and Spyro posed next to each other.

"You had one day out of the year to get something delivered to this island, and you chose sunglasses?"

[Oh, just open your gift and see what I got for you.]

"It better be something good" she said as she shook the box to guess at what it was, before opening it. When she finished opening her present, she burst out laughing.

"A laptop battery! I was only joking when I asked to go find one in the woods!"

[But I love you, Coco. How could I not get something that you needed?]

"Oh you're so sweet." They hugged before Coco said she had to get Crash's gift from the garage. "In the meantime, Spyro, here's my gift to you."

Spyro opened the rectangular box and pulled out the book from inside. On the cover, it read "Dragon Atlas". Coco came back, hauling a fairly sizable gift.

"How come Crash gets the larger gift?" Spyro said in a childish yet sarcastic manor.

"Oh quit complaining. You helped me build this thing. Anyway, that book is all about Dragons, Spyro. I found it amongst piles of books at Cortex's castle. The text contains a treasure trove's worth of information on Dragon culture, history, and Dragon magic. Let me know how good the book is when you're done, I'd be fascinated to read it, too."

Spyro looked at the book, then at Coco. "Thanks, Coco. I mean it."

"I thought you'd like it. Now for Crash's gift. After watching Crash struggle immensely trying to ride you, Spyro, I thought I could help him cruse around."

[Oh come on, I only fell into the ocean five times.]

"And that's because you refuse to use a saddle" Coco responded.

[The bound between a bandicoot and his dragon must be 100 percent. And there cannot be anything separating me from my _trusty steed_.]

"Besides soggy jeans?" Coco responded, somewhat amused by Crash's out there statement.

"Well," Spyro interjected, "It was mostly my fault, since I thought Crash and I could get the hang of it without any accessories. I'm not as into wearing cloths as you two. Although those sweaters you made for us Coco during the winter were pretty stylish."

"Those sweaters were stylish, at least someone noticed." She grimaced at Crash who could only blush. "That reminds me, Spyro. The reason for why you suddenly had that ice breath during the winter is most likely explained in that book, too."

"You think so?" Spyro asked enthusiastically. Any chance he had at learning about his race excited him.

"Anyway, Crash, I think I have something that you will enjoy. Spyro and I worked pretty hard on it." Coco lifted the gray blanket off of the device she lugged into the living room, revealing a wooden board with hotrod paint and several exhaust pipes leading out the back.

[What is it, a surf board?]

"Oh it's so much more than that. You remember that device Cortex used to float around? Well, I always wondered just how something that small levitated without any propulsion system. And after some intense research, I figured it out! The board has no propulsion system!"

[So, this thing is a hover board?]

"Exactly" Coco responded eagerly. "Cortex may have been evil, but he damn sure was a genius. This hover board has a gravity lensing apparatus on it, which can literally deflect Earth's gravitational fields around an area of space, therefore nullifying the gravitational pull downwards of both the board and the rider! It took me forever to recreate a gravity lens, but with Spyro's help we figured it out. The only other problem was to figure out a reliable yet exciting way to achieve lateral movement, since the hover board's gravity lens will only allow upwards and downwards movement. Spyro also insisted on their being flames, so we built a propulsion system that runs by burning the hydrogen in the air. The process isn't all that powerful or efficient, but since the board only really has to deal with the friction between you and the air, it can get up to some decent speeds, with a cool fire effect in the back and a renewable and plentiful source of energy."

"Yeah, it's a little disappointing that we never figured out the whole flying together thing," Spyro interjected, "but this is a pretty solid backup plan. And here, here's my gift for you. Coco helped me pick this out to complement your new hover board."

Crash looked at the leather jacket, knowing it was similar to the ones he saw people wearing when they were riding motor cycles. He once noted his interest in such jackets when Coco showed him a video on her laptop, but never imagined he'd actually ever wear one (or ride a motorcycle, but this hover board was an improvement).

"Aw-sum." Crash managed to speak. He put on the jacket and put on his sunglasses again. [When do I get to test out the hover board?]

"First Ice cream, then flying" Spyro reassured Crash.

[Sounds like a plan, Spyro.]

Crash hugged Spyro unexpectedly, and Spyro hugged him back.

"Ha-pe, bur-thdaa, Sp – I… ro."

"Thanks Crash."

"Group hug!" Coco said, and the family hugged each other.

* * *

 _˂They really do love each other, don't they?˃_

 _˂I guess I envy them. It's been centuries since I held my wife's hand. It's why telling Crash the truth will devastate him.˃_

 _˂You said he was capable of letting go. That he had told Spyro the truth and overcame his guilt. But I understand what you mean. I can feel it through you; Spyro's really become a part of his family. So maybe it'll be Spyro that can't let go, instead of Crash.˃_

 _˂It will be painful, but it would be the right thing. However, it's not the only thing they could do. As we agreed, it really is up to them, whatever they decide.˃_

 _˂And as I've said, I'll be happy with whatever Spyro chooses.˃_

* * *

[So how does this thing work?]

"Okay, here's the little remote that controls the thrust of the board as well as the gravity lens. This lever which you can control with your thumb will determine how fast you want to go, and these three buttons control the lens. This one will cause you to levitate upwards, this one will stabilize your height, and this one will cause you to descend. It shouldn't be that hard to learn how to steer, that will be a matter of tilting the board in one direction or the other. You should also be able to steer in any direction, in all axes, since the gravity lens bends gravity fields around you, too. It will feel a little wired not experiencing gravity, but if you master it, you should be able to ride that board in any orientation, even upside down. As far as staying attached to the hover board is concerned, I've applied some electro-magnetic material to your shoes, so that you can stick to the board and disable the magnets when needed. I actually haven't test piloted this, so… Good luck. I promise it won't explode!"

"Try to see if you can keep up, Crash!" Spyro shouted as he took off."

"Try not to hurt yourself, okay big brother."

Crash kissed his sister on the cheek before mounting his hover board. It ascended to his command, and surprisingly kept its balance perpendicular to the ground. Crash was worried the board would feel wobbly and unstable, but it remained perfectly parallel to the ground and was also completely silent (and wobbling wouldn't even matter according to Coco, since he wasn't being affected by gravity at the moment anyway). Coco had mentioned the gravity lens didn't make any noise. The same couldn't be said for the hydrogen thrusters. This board is badass. And Crash did eventually catch up with Spyro, kneeling to better increase his aerodynamics.

[Race you to Sunset Vista.]

"Oh you're on, bandicoot!"

They took off, to the worry of Coco. "Be careful Crash!" She shouted to no response. Crash and Spyro made their way to the second island, which was abandoned by whatever civilization had once inhabited the place. There were some impressive stone structures here. Crash had labeled the top of the highest building as Sunset Vista, and Spyro had said he'd been to the place before. It was close, but Spyro did beat Crash to the top of Sunset Vista by a little less than a second.

"Aha, a machine is not match for me!"

[I'm still getting used to it.]

"Yeah, yeah, yeah."

Crash slowly brought the fire painted hover board to the top of the stone monument and turned off the gravity lens. Crash got off, still wearing his leather jacket and glasses, and sat on the edge of the large pyramid shaped building, facing the setting sun. Spyro joined him, a little tired from flying so fast.

"Be-utfl day." Crash said to the best of his ability.

"Yes. Yes it is. It's also been a great day. Coco and I had been working on that hover board for seven months, you know. I'm glad it works and you like it."

[It allows me to join you in the sky. How could I not like it?]

"Sometimes, Crash… I think I was supposed to come to the future."

Crash wasn't sure how to feel about Spyro mentioning this subject again. It must have been because of the book Coco had given to Spyro today for his birthday. He was going to learn about his culture for the first time.

[I'm glad for all the time I've had to know you Spyro. I may still feel a little guilty about it, but having you around, from when I held you in my arms for the first time to racing you here today, these moments have made my family whole.]

"I guess I was like the son you could never have."

That made Crash feel awful. He knew why that statement made him feel so bad; it invoked what Aku-Aku said about Spyro and what Coco told him about Tawna. He had gotten over her death; but Spyro's statement brought up those old memories of just Tawna and Crash on the beach.

"Coco told me a lot about Tawna. She told me what she meant to you. How much you loved her. What you went through to rescue her. To lose someone that close to you, someone you wanted to start a family with, to have a child with. It vicariously hurts me to think of losing someone like that. Which is why I'm glad to have filled this role for you… dad." It'd had been awhile since Spyro had actually called him dad. Crash was starting to tear up again. He never knew Spyro knew this much about him, or that Coco had told him.

[You should have been taken from the past just to help me feel better.] Crash wasn't sure why he was feeling ashamed for bringing Spyro to the future again. He was sure he had gotten over this guilt.

"But I'm glad that you did. I just want to let you know once and for all, that I do not regret having been brought to your home or your time."

"Thank… you… Spyro."

Spyro heard the words, and then double took because of how well they were said. "I guess you can speak if you put your mind to it."

Crash hadn't noticed how well he had spoken until Spyro pointed it out. They watched the sunset a little longer, until a golden glowing Dragonfly landed next to them.


	13. Because Spyro Disappeared Part 1

**Chapter 13: Because Spyro Disappeared**

 _Hope… hope is irrational. It's what allows you to lie to those you know and love. It's what drives courage, bravery, altruism; it's what lets you sacrifice your life for others. Hope exists because of martyrs. In their selflessness lies the inspiration others need to overcome despair and anguish._

* * *

The Sorceress executed the remaining two thieves who had failed to bring her the purple dragon. She could only hope the other one who didn't show up was either dead or captured. And to think the fools thought they could hide from me after they failed to obey me. On her throne room, as her servants cleaned up the ashes of what used to be two individuals, the Sorceress was lost in thought about Malefor. As disappointed as she was that those three idiots she sent to retrieve the egg had failed, the Sorceress was also concerned with what Malefor's ploy was. Why had he come to me and asked me to deal with the next purple Dragon? What did he mean when he said "someday, I'll have what I want as well?" For the truth was the Sorceress was worried about him. He was the only creature on this Earth who stood a chance at defeating me. I was warned by my prophets of a new threat to my throne recently, and then that very day Malefor came to the Forgotten Realms and told me what it was. But he couldn't possibly have my best interest in mind. For all I knew, Malefor was the threat my prophet had warned me about.

The thought stopped her in her tracks. What if Malefor had intervened and prevented my thieves from delivering the newly born Purple Dragon to me? Malefor potentially could have known that I planned on appropriating that purple Dragon's special connection to the convexity for myself. The process would have killed it, and that's what Malefor wanted, but what if he only used me to get the Dragon egg out of the Dragon Realms and syphoned the baby Dragon's life force for himself. Maybe I should have allowed my thieves to explain themselves before I obliterated them. Too late for that I'm afraid.

"Bianca!" The Sorceress shouted impatiently. I need to know where Malefor is. My immortality and dictatorship of this planet will not end because of a damn Dragon.

"Yes my liege" Bianca said as she humbly knelt before the Sorceress.

"Prepare a location spell and meet me in the laboratory."

"Right away Sorceress."

The Sorceress retrieved her scepter and proceeded down a long hallway in her throne room. This very castle used to belong to Dragons, as did most of the world. But of course my father attempted to rectify that plight, and then gave me the power to banish all Dragons from these realms when he failed. They all cower on six islands which I can't enter, and now - to the best of my knowledge - their only hope at defeating me, a new Purple Dragon, has been stolen from them and killed. "They all need to die, now." The Sorceress thought as she headed to her personal laboratory. "Any Dragon's existence is an insult to my honor. I promised my father I'd kill them all, and a thousand years later I still haven't fulfilled that promise."

The Sorceress entered her laboratory along with Bianca and a few other servants. The Sorceress focused her dark power, shaping it insider her as she prepared to use it to find Malefor. Bianca had prepped the large glass sphere located in the center of the room for a location spell, and now all the Sorceress needed to do was locate Malefor. It would be difficult, but there was a reason why she had killed millions to be the most powerful there is.

"Across the skies and all the lands, across the realms of Avalar and the seasonal plains, magic lay lines scatted through Earth's veins, reveal to me my greatest threat."

With a tremendous exertion of will, the Sorceress provided the magic and energy necessary for her spell to work, and indeed the forces at be located the Dragon whom the Sorceress wished to find. His location was a total shock.

"Where is that, my liege?" Bianca asked.

"Bianca, contact Ripto. Tell him his queen requests his audience."

"Sorceress…"

"Now!" Bianca scuttled off. That bastard has finally done it. After a thousand years, he's finally returning home. Somehow, he got through the magical barrier keeping him and me out of the Dragon Realms. And if he can enter Artisans, why can't I? Father, every Dragon dies today, I promise.

* * *

Hope was the drive that kept Elora going. Hope that somehow, someway, a hero would emerge and end the suffering of so many. She realizes now how pointless it is to pray that some hero could show up and free Avalar from Ripto. The Professor, bless his heart, believed so intently that he could build a portal and find the Dragons that had disappeared from the world a thousand years ago and seek their aid. That somehow, the orbs he searched tirelessly for would bring to Avalar the savior it needed. As valiant as his effort was, Ripto and his henchmen discovered us while we were trying to activate a portal. It was safe to say a Dragon never showed up, and although Hunter and I were able to escape, the Professor wasn't so lucky.

In her adolescence Ripto suddenly appeared and wreaked havoc and destruction upon Summer Plains; the memory of fauns fleeing and screaming, trying to escape the invasion still burned within her mind. She was old enough to know what was happening, even though her mother had lied to her and said everything was going to be alight. She knew it in her head that after that day, nothing would be alright ever again, but in her heart she believed her mother and continued to run. Her mother was captured and Elora never saw her again, almost all of her village suffered the same fate. From that day on, all she had was hope, that the lie her mother told her was true. Sometimes Elora imagines what the world was like before all the Dragons disappeared. She had heard of them frequently. How they were the benevolent protectors of the world. How could the Professor really believe that Dragons could save us? They lost their war with the Sorceress millennia ago and now the whole world was trapped in chaos while the remaining Dragons apparently are hiding in six magical islands. Well Elora wasn't going to rely on mythos to free Avalar. The death of the Professor had sparked a rage insider of her that only action could extinguish. This is what hope allows Elora and her followers to do. Attempt something as reckless and dangerous as this, a direct confrontation with Ripto himself. Attack him in at his throne, and by some miracle defeat him. Who stood beside here were a few brave enough, foolish enough, hopeful enough to join Elora in this journey.

Seeing those awful flags drape down upon the castle was a disheartening sight. Ripto had already conquered all three Seasonal Planes; his forces terrorizing citizens all across Avalar: the Gemcutters of Glimmer, the monks of Colossus, the Bonebuilders of the Skelos Badlands, the Hippos of Shady Oasis, the Wizards of Cloud Temples, and even the other Fauns from Fracture Hills. Hopefully today, by some miracle, she and her rag tag team could end this.

"I don't know Elora, this does seem kind of risky" Hunter said again, repeatedly voicing his skepticism of this idea Elora had.

"Now's not the time for cowardice, Hunter. There's no time for strategizing, no time for waiting or hiding. If we have the ability to kill Ripto today, we have an obligation to those we've loved to try."

"Being practical is not cowardly. What you're asking us to do is impossible. Acting this irrationally, this carelessly, what's gotten into you, Elora?"

"You damn well what's wrong! Maybe he didn't mean that much to you, but the Professor was like a father to me, and when his life was in the balance, I ran! Well no more. Today Ripto pays for all he's done."

Hunter didn't respond. He couldn't. He was a warrior, he should be feeling what Elora is feeling. The urge, the need to seek vengeance against his enemy. But he just didn't have that anger swelling in him. It was because he was afraid. He could lie to the other but not to himself. Magic, mysticism, nothing he was ever trained in dealing with. What good does a bow and arrow do against someone who can incinerate you with his staff and summon monsters to do his bidding? How can I, how can we stop something like that?

"Elora," Sheila softly rebuttaled, "I understand you're upset and angry. We all do, and you have every right to be. But you can't lose sight of what's important. You, your life, the lives of those you know. That's what we're fighting for."

"I haven't lost sight of anything, Sheila. I remember as clearly as my name what I'm fighting for. For my mother, for the Professor, for the all the Fauns Ripto's murdered - for this, he must pay."

"Elora's right, Sheila" Bentley added. "It doesn't matter why any of us want vengeance, what matters is that we actually accomplish it."

"Elora, to seek vengeance, to end someone's life for retribution and closure, is never a path you can walk away from unchanged. Just know that if you go through with this, a part of you will die along with Ripto. And I only say this because I care about you. The Elora I knew before everything went to hell, before Ritpo attacked."

It was true, Elora had known Sheila the longest out of the six people here. In a way she was like her sister. She was of what little family she had left.

"That's enough, everyone" Byrd interrupted. "We all agreed to be here, which means that if it comes to it, we're willing to do anything to stop Ripto. There can be no doubt when we strike, all of us must be willing to do what it takes and give everything you have to end this war. This is the burden we have; this is the reality we face. For the sake of all those who are relying on us, we finish this, no matter what it takes."

"Yeah, what the Penguin said" Agent Nine added excitedly.

"Then it's settled. Together… we end this."

Hunter looked on as everyone but himself stealthy made their way to Summer Plane's castle. It was very likely that all six of them would die today. And unlike Elora suggested, Hunter did miss the professor. If only his quest to find the Dragon Realms was successful; if only I could have saved his life. Hopefully… I get a chance to redeem myself. And with this, Hunter reluctantly followed the others with whatever courage he found within himself.

* * *

Malefor for the past thousand years was unable to enter the Dragon Realms, and as a consequence hadn't seen a Dragon in that same amount of time. For all the Elder Dragons knew at the time, they expected him to die in a confrontation with the Sorceress or of old age, no longer a threat to them and their coopted up race. My pursuit of the Power Gems that "corrupted me" made me so dangerous that I was to be exiled from my home. Even after I had sacrificed so much for them. The stole my innocence from me, my childhood. Because I was a purple Dragon, I was to sacrifice my ambitions and serve my species in defending them from its greatest threat, the Sorcerer. I made that sacrifice, I lost my Dragonfly Aurea, the only family I ever had. And all I got in return was banishment. Well I accomplished what you feared Elders. I became a true Purple Dragon. It was unfortunate that the Elder Dragons who had ruined his life were no longer alive. I guess I'm going to have to settle with their descendants. And unfortunately for this group of Elders, they didn't have a Purple Dragon to force to protect themselves.

"So this is Artisans?" Malefor said to himself as Gnorks were tearing the place apart. It's smaller than I remember."


	14. A Painful Decision

**Chapter 14: A Painful Decision**

 _I spent eight years making it Cortex. I put my blood, sweat and tears into recreating it. Your masterpiece, your life's work. You saved my life all those years ago, and now it finally has purpose. Are… are you pleased master?_

 _Yes my son. Now, to fulfil my final wish. Turn on the Time Twister Machine._ _Uka-Uka allotted himself a private laugh._

* * *

˂Crash, it's time we talked.˃

That was Aku-Aku's voice. It had been ages since Crash had last heard it. Crash and Spyro were currently perched at the top of Sunset Vista, the stone monument erected by a long forgotten civilization. It was dawn, and Crash and Spyro were celebrating their observed birthdays together. The urgency in Aku-Aku's voice suggested this peaceful moment would end shortly.

"Ugh, Crash? Are you hearing something in your head? Because I think I am" Spyro asked confusedly.

Sparx landed in-between Crash and Spyro, causing both of them to look at the glowing dragonfly in curiosity.

"What is that?" Spyro said as he stared at the glowing insect.

"Cum on Sp-i—ro," [we need to head back to the house, something urgent has come up.]

"It wouldn't have anything to do with the voice in my head, would it?"

[It might.]

Crash got onto his hover board Coco had made for his birthday today and instructed it to levitate. He and Spyro took off and headed back to the first island. The dragonfly that landed next to them earlier was following them, and flew very close to Spyro as all three of them headed east.

"Man what is this thing, and why is it following me?" Spyro asked Crash.

"Eyem no-t shurre. Neah- ver se- n anee-ting l-eye-k it be—for." Crash struggled to say as they both were flying home.

"It does seem pretty harmless. But still, why is it following me?"

˂It's because he has come a long way to meet you.˃

"Ugh" Spyro complained, "It's that voice again. It's seriously giving me a headache. Are you hearing this Crash?"

˂Aku-Aku,˃ Crash thought, ˂Could you take it easy on physic conversation, please. Spyro isn't use to the intrusion yet.˃

˂He'll have to get used to it, Crash. It's the only way he will be able to understand the Dragonfly next to him.˃

"Wait, 'Dragon… fly'? And did I just hear you in my head, Crash?"

"Ya- es." [Let's get home Spyro, I'm sure my sister has also been contacted by Aku-Aku. This must be important.]

"Aku-Aku? Who is that?"

"An o- ld fr ee- end."

Spyro and Crash landed on the beach in front of their home and opened the front door, to see Coco standing in the living room with Aku-Aku in her hand.

"Here Crash, you know this thing freaks me out."

[So he has "spoken" to you as well.]

"As a woman of science, the prospect of a Spirt inhabiting an artifact is scary enough. And yes, he 'talked' to me. It sounds important."

˂Very Important. All of you have a very important decision to make.˃

Spyro made his way to his favorite spot on the couch and sat down, only to have Sparx land on the arm rest next to him.

"Okay, ugh… Aku-Aku. Would you mind telling me what's going on, and who this Dragonfly is?"

˂Hello Spyro,˃ a new voice echoed inside everyone's mind. ˂My name is Sparx, and I've waited a very long time to meet you.˃

˂It is true, Spyro˃ Aku-Aku told him ˂He is your guardian, Spyro. And he was meant to born on the same day as you a hundred thousand years ago, but when you were unexpectedly brought so far into the future, he patiently waited so long to meet you, for it is his destiny. To be your protector and guide.˃

"My… protector? But, he's so small?"

˂If the need is sufficient, he can heal you from mortal injury and prevent you from dying at his own life's expense. In essence, Sparx acts as your extra life.˃

"Wow, really…"

˂A scarify I am willing to make if needed, Spyro. It's because I believe in you and your purpose. To save all of Dragon-kind from an evil which unfortunately consumed them so many melena ago.˃

˂For the past eight years, Sparx and I have been having a debate, which we couldn't come to a conclusion on, because it involve your and Crash. So we leave the decision to you to, because untimely it is your own choices to make.˃

"And what is that, Aku-Aku?" Coco asked concernedly.

˂If you had the opportunity to go back Spyro, to go back in time, would you?˃ Sparx asked his best friend.

"What… how?"

"Yeah, how?" Coco asked. "Spyro was brought here to the future via Cortex's and Dr. Tropy's Time Twisting Machine, which was destroyed eight years ago."

˂Yes, yes it was. And in the process Dr. Cortex himself was killed. But my twin brother, Uka-Uka was not. And for the past eight years, he has found and is using a new slave to do his bidding: N-Gin.˃

"Who is that?" Coco and Spyro asked in unison.

˂A vengeful, lost soul I'm afraid. Before you and Crash were created, Coco, Cortex hand found the young boy on the brink of death and saved his life. He cured him of the malignant cancer destroying his body, probably because Cortex had sympathy for the orphaned kid who had as harsh of an upbringing as Cortex himself had as a child.˃

"No. That can't be true. Cortex has no sympathy. He is pure evil."

˂The Cortex you knew Coco was the product of Uka-Uka's evil influence, Coco. Uka-Uka sensed the need for Cortex to do something grand with his intelligence, his disconnect and hatred from the society that forced him to be a vagabond in his youth and used that anger to control him. That's what my brother does. He finds the fault in men and extorts it. And now he is using his control over N-Gin to force him to build another Time Twisting Machine. N-Gin's hatred towards Crash for killing the only person he's ever loved in his life allowed Uka-Uka to have complete control over him. And any day now, N-Gin will be successful in creating a new Time Twisting Machine. You must stop him, all of you. If N-Gin is successful in traveling back in time, he will take Uka-Uka straight to the Sorceress. For you see, Uka-Uka plans on controlling her as he is with N-Gin and did with Cortex. For she is the strongest mage in all of existence; if Uka-Uka succeeds, all life on the planet, not just the Dragons, will die.˃

˂And if you succeed in stopping Uka-Uka, Spyro and Crash,˃ Sparx continued, ˂you will have the ability to return home Spyro, if you choose. To stop the extinction of the Dragon race. To defeat the Sorceress like you were destined to before you were brought here by Crash.˃

Crash looked to at the floor, ashamed. He was used to not participating in conversations, and right now he didn't feel like it but accidently did through the psychic link.

˂My fault˃ Crash thought to himself. ˂I knew the effects of Time traveling were dangerous and unpredictable. But I caused every Dragon to die.˃

"Now wait just a minute!" Spyro said furiously, "You can't just blame Crash for this! He saved my life. I was stolen by thieves while I was still in my egg and Crash rescued me from them and by extension the Sorceress. If it wasn't for him, I would have been killed anyway."

˂Very true, Spyro˃ Aku-Aku responded calmly. ˂And I am not blaming Crash for anything. He made a bold and courage's decision a hundred thousand years ago. I am simply informing all of you of the ramifications of said decision. You see, before Sparx's father was killed, he gave his son the memories of every Dragonfly that was still alive before they all were killed by the Sorceress. After Spyro was stolen from Artisans by thieves, a Dragon named Ignites was tasked with following them and rescuing you Spyro. Crash appeared and brought you to the future before Ignites could save you from you're captors. You would have lived Spyro. Although it was never Crash's intention, his decision to bring you to the present and remove you from your time stream eventually lead to the downfall of the Dragons, the Dragonflies, and all the species of Avalar.˃

Crash at this point had both his hands on his head and was breathing irregularly. Coco noticed and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Eyem - I… so sar- rery!" Crash said somewhat raspy.

"Crash, none of this is your fault." Coco said comfortingly.

˂Crash, What I have to tell you is tragic indeed. I again will remind you I don't think the decision you made was a wrong, but nevertheless it prevented Spyro from defending his kind from the Sorceress. However, Fate as presented you with an opportunity to change things. With N-Gin's Time Twisting Machine, you have the opprotunity to undo the choice you made or stick with it.˃

˂I… Spyro, you… you have to go back˃ Crash then though for everyone to hear.

"Crash… are you sure?" Spyro asked worriedly.

"You know what that would mean, right Crash?" Coco said besides her brother. "You'll be saying goodbye to Spyro forever."

˂I'm afraid it's worse than that, Coco˃ Sparks informed everyone through Aku-Aku.

˂If Spyro were to be sent back, this current future would not exist. Dragons would never go extinct and be replaced by man as the dominate species on the planet. Crash, Coco, you would never exist. Humanity itself might never exist. All of history up to Spyro's disappearance would be altered.˃

˂It's a tough choice˃ Sparx continued. ˂Neither Aku-Aku or I think there is a right answer. Is it right to send Spyro back in time, only to wipe out the existence of another sentient species? Was it Fate that Spyro was removed from his time, to allow Dragons to die out and be replaced?˃

˂In any case, you must stop N-Gin and Uka-Uka. Afterwards, you can make your choice. Sparx and I will support either one you make.˃

"I… I don't know. How can I or Crash make a decision like that?" Spyro demanded.

"Yuoo… shuld go. Sp-i-ro." Crash said solemnly.

"How can you just say that, Crash?" Coco asked somewhat angrily. "If he goes back to the past, you might cease to exist! I might cease to exist! What happened to the Dragons is tragic, but we shouldn't rewrite history with machines that can bend time. That is too risky and not our right to do."

[We used it to gather Crystals, Coco, which is what caused this mess in the first place. Spyro has the opportunity to correct my mistake of eradicating an entire species.]

"And kill off the rest of humanity!? Are you even listening to yourself? How can you be okay with that?" Coco said even more angrily.

"I… I think I choose to stay, Aku-Aku." Spyro said somewhat unsure. "Coco's right. It's… it's too risky."

"No, Sp-i-ro!" Crash said as he stood up from his seat before he used Aku-Aku to tell Spyro not to leave with his own thoughts. ˂You have to go back. This isn't where you belong. Coco and I aren't your family; you belong with your kind. To grow up with other Dragons and become the hero you were meant to be.˃

˂But Crash… this is my family. Here with you.˃

˂No! I'm not your father! I'm not your brother! I'm not your friend! I'm just a murder! In trying to save the world I murdered your entire species. You, you can't love me! Not after what I've done.˃

"Crash, none of that is true." Coco said trying to reassure her brother.

˂Yes it is!˃ Crash thought as he turned around to face his sister, with tears of anguish as he hated himself for what he's done. Crash than sat on the floor, covering his eyes.

Spyro walked towards Crash after a couple of seconds and sat next to him.

"You're wrong Crash. I am your son, brother, and friend. No matter what you think or how it happened. And whether I choose to return to my time or not, those things will still be true."

Crash looked up from the floor and faced Spyro, tears still dripping from his eyes. Spyro then hugged him, and after a few seconds, Crash wrapped his arms around Spyro as well.


	15. Because Spyro Disappeared Part 2

**Chapter 15: Because Spyro Disappeared Part 2**

Ripto may be a powerful mage from whatever hellhole he slithered out of, but it will be his pride that will lead to his downfall today. Ripto was so vain, that he dissolutely plastered banners displaying his insignia all over Summer Falls Castle. But it wasn't his arrogance that gave Elora and her team of rebels the upper hand, it was his hubris that did. He was virtually unprotected here, so confident in his complete victory over Avalar that he was left exposed, sitting popups on his throne.

Elora, Hunter, Sheila, Bentley, James Byrd, Agent 9, and Bianca made their way stealthy through the castle. Their destination was the imperial room, where Ripto was to be. Their goal was to kill him, whether with an arrow to the back or crushed under Bentley's weight, the method didn't matter.

"Don't worry Hunter, I know this castle front and back." The group had swum through a secret underwater passageway that lead them directly into the castle past whatever lackluster patrol's there were stationed throughout. Elora had to bribe a greedy bear nicknamed Moneybags to disclose the location of said passageway and not give away their plan. Though Elora was enraged that he was somehow profiting off of Ripto's occupation of Avalar, reluctantly the group accepted his fee for the information and now where so close to murdering the tyrant who had killed so many.

"If our cover is blown at all Elora, we will not make it out of this castle. There may be an insufficient amount of guards here, but Ripto is not to be underestimated. His magic is lethal, we've seen it firsthand."

"You don't have to remind me Hunter. It's the reason why we're here. To avenge those who have fallen: the Professor, Bartholomew, Isabella, Billy. Now I'm counting on you Hunter, when you have the shot to end Ripto, take it." Hunter, Bentley, Byrd, and Sheila for a moment respectively remember those who they lost and were the cause of this mission.

"Don't worry Elora, I won't miss."

"I'm sure you won't Hunter." Byrd said, "Bianca, are you sure you can get all of us out of here once Ripto is dead?"

Bianca hadn't spoken since this mission began. As nervous as she was; she composed herself and responded to James' question. "Yes, I can evacuate all of us with a spell when the time comes."

"I'm sure you can beautiful." Bianca blushed and looked away from Hunter, but not because of his compliment.

"Not to tread on your maniacal plans for retribution Byrd," Agent 9 said rather rudely, "but if only Hunter and Bianca are important for this mission, than why are you, Bentley, Elora, Sheila, and I even here?"

"In case things turn south. And because each one of us, including you, would refuse not to be here."

"Hmm. Point taken. Aha!"

"Yeah," Bentley responded cheerfully, "so keep the safety on that blaster of yours on unless you need to use it, Nine."

"Oh! When I see that pointy headed freak I'm going to BLAST HIM!"

"Quite Nine, Elora instructed, "we're here."

Everyone stopped and got into position. Hunter stepped forward and retrieved his bow and stealthily maneuvered into a firing position. Everyone remained behind him waiting for him to take the shot. Below, in the throne room, Ripto was speaking. He was by himself, though a Smokey image that was before him was also speaking. Hunter waited as Ripto continued to converse with the abortion in front of him.

"Yes," Ripto spoke, "your contributions has aided by conquest of Avalar immensely. Soon, you will have the whole world under your control."

"I'm glad to see your irrational hatred of Dragon's hasn't blinded your reality, Ripto. And for your compliance, I will most likely let you live. My traitor inside the Dragon Realms has lowered the barrier surrounding those islands which has kept me out for centuries, and by the days end I will have the entire world under my control minus the Forgotten Realms. Once you have dealt with the meager resistance in Avalar, I expect to hear from you again, Ripto."

So the Dragon Realms have fallen. It made Elora and the Professor's attempts to bring a Dragon to Avalar a while ago seem so pointless.

"Of course Malefor; and I must say your assassin has proved quite useful. She is both completely loyal and extremely lethal. A combination most impressive indeed for such a young Dragoness. More powerful than my Crush and Gulp."

"She is a dragoness whose fully master's the convexity like I have. She will deal with those rebels that have eluded you and your minions, Ripto."

"I assure you, I was always more than capable of dealing with those simpletons than you give me credit for. The point was to break their spirits along with their bodies. Even as we speak, the Sorceress' spy relays me the whereabouts of the Resistance, and soon they will all be dealt with. Their villages will be sacked, their warriors slaughter, their women and children enslaved, their leaders publically executed. The resistance and Avalar's ability to resist you and I will all die all at once."

A spy. Even when they thought they had an advantage over Ripto, it appears that yet again he somehow had the upper hadn. Who is the spy? And who is this assassin?

"I will… 'deal' with the Sorceress soon. You're allegiance to her ends soon Ripto. I except to hear from you soon. Don't disappoint me."

"I will not, my lord. As a matter affect, you will hear from me real soon."

The foggy image of a large Dragon faded leaving Ripto alone on his throne smiling viciously. "Take the shot Hunter" Elora whispered. Hunter loaded his bow and drew it back. Ripto lifted his staff into the air, and when Hunter relapsed his arrow, it deflected of an invisible barrier, sparks flying out where the arrow made contact with the shield. Ripto laughed out loudly and used his scepter to fire a large beam of energy at the concealed Rebels near the rooftop. The blast struck below Hunter and Elora, which destabilized the area everyone was standing at. The Rebels then fell to the floor in a pile of rubble, now facing Ripto.

"Oh, it's nice to have all of you in one place finally. It will make killing you so much less time consuming. I'm also glad you were able to listen into my conversation. It makes the grand reveal all the more satisfying."

"You're not going to reveal anything Ripto!" Elora shouted. "You're outnumbered and out of time. You're tyranny ends now."

"Well it's not all my tyranny as you've most likely just learned Faun. Elora isn't it. I've taken special notice of you. The one of few fauns to escape my initial assault, so hell-bent on enacting revenge against me she would march herself and all her friends straight to their deaths."

Agent Nine yelled out and began firing at Ripto. The bullets from his blaster gun ricocheted of Ripto's shield in a multitude of directions, not worrying Ripto in the slightest.

"Impatient are we, and I haven't even gotten to the good part yet." Ripto pointed his scepter at Agent Nine, and a much large beam than the shot's coming from Nine's blaster struck him as he went flying back in pain. "You're probably wondering how I knew you were attempting to kill me today and by extension who the traitor is that has informed me of this. Well she happens to be standing right next to you Elora."

Elora, Hunter, Bentley, Byrd, and Sheila looked to the back of the group to see Bianca bowing her head in shame. "B-Bianca? H… How?" Hunter managed to say as he stared at his love in disbelief.

"I… I had no choice."

"Oh Bianca had a choice. For months she has been my mole, directly responsible for so many deaths. She should be proud. And now she has finally betrayed those most closet to her, because she is incapable of freeing her family from the Sorceress' grip."

"The Sorceress. She has my family held hostage. She's wiped out almost my entire race. She made me do this, if I didn't, she would kill them and me" Bianca pleaded with those she had grown accustomed to.

"Oh it's too late to justify your actions Bianca. You're new friends won't be around long enough to judge you. You know, I find it highly ironic that you and that professor mole thing thought a dragon would be the shining hope Avalar needed to defeat me. And now, all of you will be killed by one."

"Not if I we have anything to say about it Ripto." Byrd proclaimed. But just as he said it, the doors behind the group blasted open, revealing a black dragoness standing menacingly behind the Rebels. She had emerald-green eyes, a magenta colored underbelly, a blade-like tail covered in iron along with bladed claws on her wing thumbs, hedge wings with membranes the same color as her underbelly, and six silver-white horns on her head. Cynder starred at her pray, ready to carry out her master Malefor's orders.

"Cynder, if you please, deal with these pests, but leave the Faun for me."

Cynder lunged flowered with increasable speed straight at Bentley. Unprepared, Bentley managed to get his club into the air but was tackled by Cynder and dragged to the ground. Her sharp claws gashed Bentley's throat, sliced open the soft tissue, and severed his jugular which caused him to gurgle in pain before he bled out. Hunter drew his bow and unleashed an arrow at Cynder, but she used one of the two silver bracelets on her two front paws to deflect the arrow and took to the air. James also took to the air using his jetpack and fired several rockets at Cynder. She nimbly dodged all his rocket fire and unleashed a hellish flame of Shadow Breath upon Byrd. His cries of pain were muffled by the intensity of the flame, and a charred carcass soon landed on the ground.

Hunter, not knowing what to do, was blindsided by Ripto, who was shocking him with intense lighting from his staff. He convulsed violently on the floor and screamed out in agony to the dismay of Elora.

"Stop Ripto, please!"

"What? You came here with the intention to kill me but now you want to bargain. There is no stopping this; there is only death for you and your friends now."

Ripto intensified the lightning covering Hunter's entire body. He screamed out again, until he stopped moving and remained limp.

"No!" Elora screamed as she collapsed to the ground to hold hunter. Agent Nine, struggling to get upright, reached for his blaster pistol and aimed it at Ripto, only to be slammed to the ground by Cynder, who had landed on top of him. He screamed out in pain as well, causing both Elora and Ritpo to look at both he and Cynder, as she pinned down the small helpless monkey. Cynder clamped her massive jaws around the simian's neck and ripped his throat clean open. Somewhere to his right lay Sheila's mutilated caucus. In less than two minutes, Malefor's assassin had destroyed the Rebel leadership, leaving only Elora and Hunter for Ripto to torture.

Tears streaming down her face, Elora pondered about what her mother has said about hope before she was murdered. It definitely was irrational.

"And then there was one. The heart and soul of the resistance. The one who rallied them together and filled them with hopes and gave them courage. A faun who couldn't deliver on her empty promises and didn't have the power to stop me by herself or with any army. I do have to give you credit Eora, though you spectacularly failed, you managed to make this a challenge for me. So like your mother before you, you're death will be swift and painless. The end of Ripto's scepter pierced through Elora's chest, intercepting her heart and ended her life immediately. She collapsed to the floor.

"Very well done Cynder. Defiantly quicker than I could have managed, although your methods lack… flair. Leave the bunny alone, she lives as part of the deal."

Cynder backed off the quivering bunny and turned to face Ripto, drenched in her adversaries' blood. "Do not give me orders."

"So I see there is some personality in there somewhere. Though you consider yourself so much more powerful than I, you are no Malefor and no match for me. Now I'd listen or Malefor's greatest assassin will be replaced."

"You're lying. I can see it in your eyes."

"Sigh. So determined, so cocky, so dumb. You fail to see the bigger picture. You blindly follow Malefor and carry out his dirty work yet you never even bothered to think of why Malefor needs my assistance in the first place… I guess you're going to want me to explain it for you."

"My master doesn't need you, Ripto. He's using you, and I think your usefulness has run out."

"Oh do you now? I guess that's what happens when you blindly march to your master's fife. Do you even know where Malefor is right now? What he's doing? He's eradicating almost every Dragon left on this planet. Why? I'm sure you can't even begin to fathom his reasoning for genocide, and that's because you know nothing of your master. But I do, and I know about you. Stolen from the very place Malefor is destroying and augmented to be his slave and executioner because he never would have a child of his own. Eternally angry at the Dragon's that cast him out millennia ago and enacting his revenge on their descendants. Killing every creature he feels is in inferior to himself, trying to earn the loyalty of the one creature he does respect. You are nothing to him Cynder, merely a pawn in his conquest of the world and for the affection of his true love. You act cold, calculating, without conscious, and believe yourself to be an irreplaceable part of Malefor's vision, but that can't be farther from the truth. For he doesn't love or need you. He, like me, is just using you."

Cynder contemplated what Ripto had just said, taking it all in. It was lies, designed to unbalance her, but Cynder couldn't respond to Ripto.

"Now if you don't mind, I need to report to Malefor. You're free to go Cynder, and maybe you can find out just how much your surrogate father doesn't love you. See if what you saw in my eyes was truly deception or the truth."


	16. Overcoming Adversity

**Chapter 16: Overcoming Adversity**

˂YOU HAVE FAILED ME N-GIN! My life's work, squandered by your incompetence!˃

"M…m- master, I… I'm sorry! I'm not worthy to be you're apprentice! I don't deserve to live!" Crash, Coco, and Spyro stood above N-Gin as he began to sob. It was a hard fought battle, and lasted nearly thirty minutes. N-Gin did everything he could to stop Cortex's creations and their creature from the past from ruining his master's plan. He had studied his opposition and devised several mechs in an attempt to destroy each of them. He applied his master's teachings and was sure he could avenge his death by this bandicoot's hands and fulfil his dying wish. But now he had failed. N-Gin felt so unworthy, loathing himself for failing Cortex while he lay in anguish because his master's scolding.

"Well! What are you waiting for C1! Kill me, like you killed my master!"

N-Gin's expression haunted Crash. He was so young but had been so thoroughly controlled by Uka-Uka. And after what Aku-Aku had told him about Uka-Uka's influence on the N-Gin, Crash now knew his quest for vengeance was merely his attempt at reconnecting with the man that saved N-Gin's life and who meant everything to him. Crash had killed Cortex inadvertently through the destruction of the Time Twisting machine because of Uka-Uka's plot to use said machine to take over the world. And like with Spyro and his kind, Crash's good intentions led to dire consequences on others, and again Crash felt awful because of it.

"Eye m… S- So Sarr- e, N- Gin," Crash uttered as he looked to the floor.

"I never allowed myself to sympathize with Cortex" Coco continued solemnly to say the words that her brother couldn't. "For all my life I thought he was the worst person on the planet, and I hated him because of it. But N-Gin, I was wrong. He gave me and my brother life, and he saved yours. That was one thing I never understood but I think my brother always did, which is why Cortex's death always tormented him. When Cortex said that I was ignorant to the world so many years ago, he was partially right. Because I never had the chance to understand him and why he did the things that he did. I never knew that he was dying because of a genetic condition given to him by his grandfather, I never knew that I was the success Cortex needed to cure Anton's key and save him from a premature death. I never knew of the good in Cortex or the struggles he endured because that talisman on your neck corrupted his mind and forced him to do his evil bidding, like it has tried to do with you. But Uka-Uka has never corrupted you, N-Gin. He as only manipulated you to follow his will because Uka-Uka has hidden behind the façade of your old master, and has used his memories and his voice to control you. For eight years you have been following the commands of the very monster that ruined Cortex's life. But now is your chance to break free from him like Cortex never could. And you can live the life Cortex always desired, free of evil influences. You are Cortex's worthy successor N-Gin, you just have to be yourself instead of Uka-Uka's slave."

N-Gin looked at the tiki-mask draped around his neck, which for the past eight years had allowed him to communicate with his dead master, and hear the instruction he needed to carry out in order to please him.

"He… Cortex was like my father… The Time Twister was his life's work. I… made it for him, because he gave my life purpose."

"Yes, Cortex did save your life. Now live yours. Take that neckless off, and honor Cortex in the way he always intended, before Uka-Uka ruined his life."

"B… be ah gr- grate man N-Gyn, l- ly-ke our fa- ther."

Uka-Uka seethed with rage. Somehow, his brother has corralled Cortex's failed experiments into defeating him again. No, it was N-Gin's fault now. And he must suffer! N-Gin began to cry out in pain as Uka-Uka began to glow around his neck.

˂Brother, you have lost. And I will not allow you to endanger the life on this planet any longer.˃

˂Life is the very thing wrong with this planet! It needs to be destroyed!˃

Aku-Aku and Uka-Uka began their physic battle, brothers waged in an eternal war which mirrored the struggle between good and evil in every man's soul.

˂You believe your strength comes from the hatred of others and their intent to harm others. And maybe you're right brother, but today that will be your biggest weakness. For your slave has forsaken you, while your former slave's creations will once again be the tool I use to defeat you. For they fight alongside of me to save the life of N-Gin, whose life you will not take today.˃

˂Fool! I will murder whoever I please! Including you and this useless boy!˃

N-Gin's pain intensified, but he also could hear the physic conversation unfolding between two ancient spirits. His master was not trying to kill him, it was Uka-Uka.

"You are not my master!" N-Gin screamed. "You are his enemy!"

Crash, currently wearing Aku-Aku around his neck, allowed Aku-Aku to draw from his life force to strengthen his attack against Uka-Uka, while N-Gin fought Uka-Uka's dominance over his mind, cutting him off from a life force to syphon strength from. With a great exertion of will, N-Gin cut off the metaphorical chains which Uka-Uka used to control him by physically removing Uka-Uka from his neck. Uka-Uka dropped to the floor, no longer connected to a living being and therefor unable to fight off Aka-Aka; he was now truly defeated. N-Gin collapsed to the floor, exhausted and saddened. He could no longer sense Uka-Uka in his mind, a presence he's associated with his fallen master for so long.

And even though it turned out that Cortex's presence in his head was actually a vindictive, maleficent spirt using his master's voice to manipulate him for eight years, N-Gin missed his voice in his mind, for he still sorely yearned for the man whom became the father this orphan from Australia never had.

And even if this bandicoot – a creation of his master's brilliance – took that man's life, he had now saved me from the monster that ruined Cortex's life.

And even though he might never forgive Crash for taking his… their father's life, he could be thankful for Crash re-teaching him why their father was a great man in spite of Uka-Uka.

Crash offered N-Gin his hand, and he took it. N-Gin looked at Crash with contempt, which changed to acceptance after a few moments; they were brothers after all.

"I may never forgive you for killing Cortex, Crash… but Uka-Uka took him from me first when Cortex, Nefarious, and I first came to these islands. So I guess the score's even now since you and Aku-Aku freed me from Uka-Uka... Thank you."

Crash smiled softly, content with N-Gin's compromise. "Y- ur well come."

N-Gin then looked at Spyro and Sparx. "That Dragon with you, you named him Spyro, right?"

"Yes, that Dragon's name is Spyro. And I really do hope you don't ever plan on hurting my father, or you'll have to go through me."

"Wait, how do you know Spyro's name?" Coco asked concernedly. Crash also stared at N-Gin inquisitively, seeking a response.

"I've spent a very long time studying him. Uka-Uka wanted to travel back in time using the Time Twister he forced me to create in order to take control over the being which destroyed every Dragon a hundred thousand years ago. This being, the Sorceress, was one of the most powerful creatures in existence, maybe only surpassed by two other purple Dragons: Malefor, who killed the Sorceress' father, and you Spyro. You see, through me, Uka-Uka wanted to know as much about the past as he could before he actually traveled back, and in doing so we both saw the moment in time where Crash rescued Spyro from a group of thieves and brought him forward in time. Following the chain of events after Spyro was brought to the present, Uka-Uka concluded that Spyro disappearing from his time is what ultimately allowed the Sorceress to kill of all Dragons in the first place."

"Yes, Aku-Aku has explained this very clearly to us." Coco interjected. "Which is why Spyro, Crash, and I have been having a debate on whether or not Spyro should return to the past using this Time Twister."

"Yes, but what Aku-Aku may not have explained to you is how could Crash go back in time and take Spyro from the past if at that point in time he didn't even exist yet? The though consumed my subconscious as I continued to serve Uka-Uka blindly. Now that I can think clearly, I believe I rationalized this by assuming there was a timestream where Spyro was never taken to the future and continued to live as he should have without temporal interference. In studying this hypothesis, I needed to better understand just how exactly the Time Twister actually used wormholes to adjoin two points in spacetime. What I discovered is that the timestream a user of the Time Twister departs from never ceases to exist. What does this mean for you, Spyro? It means we're currently in the timestream where you never were stolen from the past. Because you do go on to defeat the Sorceress and to stop Malefor from destroying the world, and in doing so prevent all life on this planet from going extinct. Dragons themselves only ever really go extinct do to mass planetary shifts in climate around sixty thousand years ago. Humanity eventually comes around and we get to this point. It's complicated, but the timestream where you disappear is not the one we're currently in. None of us would be alive if so."

"So if I understand you correctly N-Gin" Coco responded, "the reality we are in is one where Spyro never disappeared from his time, even though he's right here, and there is another one created where Spyro does disappear."

"This is how I know Spyro goes on to defeat the Sorceress. I've observed it in our timestream's history. But events that occur after Crash removes Spyro from his time occur in a different timestream, one which Crash couldn't exist in the first place. So ultimately, what this means for Spyro, is do you wish to save the lives of countless millions in another timestream, for you have already done so in this stream."

"I… wow… I- I don't know what to say. I really save the world from two evils that great?"

"It seems as if you've already done so, nephew." Coco said reassuringly.

"So… In a grand sense, I actually saved your life Crash, instead of you saving mine."

Crash smiled and rubbed Spyro's head. [You did, son.]

"The Time Twister can take you to that alternate reality, Spyro, if you so choose. And I also believe, similar to how Crash entered that alternate reality and came back with you eight years ago, you can bring a return pad with you Spyro and come back to this reality if you want, as well. This is the least I can do for you."

"So, I wouldn't have to say goodbye to you two forever then, Crash and Coco."

"It appears not, Spyro." Coco beamed as she smiled at the Dragon she had grown to love.

"Tell you what. Let me have one last week her in this… timestream, then I'll fix the other one. That should be enough time for me to say some not so permanent goodbyes."

"When you decided to enter the other timestream, Spyro," N-Gin continued, "I can send you to the exact moment you disappeared from that timestream. You will have aged eight years from the moment you disappeared, but in the long run that shouldn't really matter. And if you ever decide to return to this timestream, you can either return almost instantly after you left this timestream, or choose to return with the offset amount of time you spent in the other timestream."

"Thank you N-Gin. And I'm sorry for trying to burn you earlier."

"Apology accepted."

"In the meantime, what are you up to for the next week? I'd love to get the chance to better know my half cybernetic uncle."

"Oh, I… ugh."

"Oh come on N-Gin," Coco interrupted, "after all you've been through, the least my brother, Spyro, and I can do for you is show you a good time, N Sanity Island style."

"I guess that would be better than staying on this island alone. The place just reminds me of Cortex."

"Then it's settled. I hope you like Wampa fruit."

"Wampa fruit?"

˂Hmm… I guess our eight years of debate was for nothing.˃

˂Well, I wouldn't say it was for nothing, Aku-Aku, I did make a new friend in all that time.˃

And so did I, Sparx. And maybe N-Gin will make a few as well.˃


	17. Origins of Eternal Hatred

**Chapter 17: Origins of Eternal Hatred**

"Is it time daddy? Are you going to kill them all?"

"Yes my daughter. Every Dragon will answer to me, the Sorcerer, for what they have done to our ancestors. Their time of reckoning is upon them. With the power of the Convexity surging through me, none of those winged monsters will stand a chance."

"No puny Dragon can defeat you! You are the strongest there is, right daddy?"

"Yes my little Sorceress. And someday, you will be the most powerful being on this planet. It is our race's destiny."

* * *

"I've been told for years I'm destined for greatness. I've been training almost all my and now I must defend my kind from its biggest danger. But now I want to know why Incendious. Why does the Sorcerer and his people want to kill us?"

"What, you haven't been paying attention to your history lessons my young purple pupil?"

"I'm serious. What happened between the Dragons and the Dinopotamuses centuries ago that has pitted our two races against one another. If we dragons are wise and benevolent, then what have we done to earn their hatred? Why do I have to kill the Sorcerer, master?"

Malefor's teacher and friend Incendious stopped walking aside his student and sighed before he began to answer Malefor's question. "All this is so much to ask of you Malefor. I… all Dragons are asking a lot of you, to take someone's life. You strive for tranquility and enlightenment in yourself and for the world my apprentice, a noble virtue you've learned decades before any of your elders. But in these trying times peace is unfortunately not an option. The lives of so many depend on you. Because you are purple Dragon, you possess the rare ability to master all elements of Dragon magic, and as such are burdened with the momentous responsibility of defending Dragonkind from all threats foreign and domestic, from the ruthless and the irrational. ."

"A wise and humbling console, master. But you are dodging my question, as have the rest of the Elders. I know our two species entered a war several hundred years ago. But what was the cause? The Sorcerer, leagues more powerful than any one of his kind before him, now threatens to destroy us all if I can't stop him yet none of my superiors will tell me the truth of this war. Please Incendious, you've been like a father to me all these years, the elder I've trusted the most. You've taught me so much, made me who I am, raised me, and prepared me for this moment. And I will do what I have to defend my home. But I deserve to know why I have to do this? Why I have to sacrifice my beliefs and kill another living being."

"[Takes a deep breath and exhales], you do deserve to know the truth Malefor. I was told… the Council of Elders and I agreed that this should be kept secret from all Dragonkind. But it is wrong of us, wrong of me to expect you to take the Sorcerer's life without telling you why. What do you know of the Convexity, Malefor?"

"It is an infinite source of cosmic energy."

"Yes. It is an omnipresent, infinite well of pure, unfathomable energy. In essence, the Convexity _is_ power. Any living being has the potential to access the convexity, however tapping into the Convexity and using that power as your own is very, very, difficult. Your ancestor, a purple Dragon named Tyrannous was obsessed with this power. He spent his life trying to understand it and all of what we now know of the Convexity we know because of him and his use of this godly power. However, his fascination with the Convexity eventually consumed him, and he became the first Dark Dragon. He came to think of himself as a god and believed he rightfully deserved to rule the world with the power of the Convexity. His reign occurred very early in our civilization, so Tyrannous' awesome demonstration of power caused him to gain almost unanimous support. He was unstoppable and believed Dragons were Earth's superior species. Once Tyrannous became the god-king of the Dragon Realms, he sought to have the rest of the world under his control. The first species confronted by Tyrannous wrath were the Dinopotamuses. He almost killed them all, until he was challenged and eventually defeated by his brother Yodarious. Both wielded the power of the Convexity, so when Tyrannous fell, Yodarious convinced his brother's followers of the wrongdoings they inflicted on the world and dissolved Tyrannous' army. Tyrannous was a monster, Malefor, our species greatest blight. But his campaign to spread Dragon's dominance over the world was the reason why we Dragons are all over Avalar. This land we live on, it is not the original Dragon Realms, it used to belong to the Dinopotamuses, which is why they refer to it as the Forgotten Realms. This is why the Sorcerer wants revenge against us, because of what our ancestors did to his."

"So… so you're telling me Dragons invaded this realm and displaced the indigenous Dinopotamuses four centuries ago and we still live here. How can we call ourselves peacekeepers if were living on stolen land!"

"I agree with you Malefor. But our ancestors and the other species of Avalar don't see it that way, and history is written by the victors I'm afraid. Though the motivation of Tyrannous' invasion of the Dinopotamus' homeland was with malicious intent, the Dinopotamuses themselves were vicious conquerors who tormented the various species of Avalar for decades until Tyrannous arrived and almost wiped them out. Yodarious and the Dragons who followed his brother from the Dragon Realms after he fell were confronted by those oppressed by the Dinopotamuses for years beforehand and were almost worshiped for defeating their oppressors. These "new Dragon Realms" essentially became the spoils of Tyrannous' war and Dragons have been living here in peace with the other species of Avalar for centuries. But now I fear the wrath of the surviving Dinopotamuses threatens both the Dragons and creatures of Avalar alike. Our species may have done a great wrong to them, Malefor, but we cannot dwell on our species's mistakes. In defeating the Sorcerer, you will be saving the lives of countless many, not just Dragons."

"I… I don't know what to say Incendious. I'm conflicted, and unsure. But I do have a responsibility. For the creatures of Avalar, and for my brothers and sisters, I will confront the Sorcerer, even if I can't bring myself to kill him."

"The Sorcerer will have the power of the Convexity with him. But so will you; I know you will know how to use it."

"Thanks master."

"You're welcome, Malefor."

Malefor and Incendious bowed to show one another respect before they parted ways, which left Malefor and his Dragonfly Aurea alone together.

˂I can sense the turmoil in you my Dragon. Your body is willing to do this, but your heart may not be.˃

˂Aurea, how can I take the Sorcerer's life after hearing what Dragons have done to his species?˃

˂You have to place yourself not in the wings of a Dragon but in the lives of those who will be oppressed by the Sorcerer if he defeats you. This is the responsibly you have my Dragon. You cannot burden yourself with the sins of your ancestors, but strive to make the world a better place for the posterity.˃

˂You sound like my master. Except he doesn't speak in my mind.˃

˂I know how much you enjoy my presence inside your mind Malefor.˃

˂And you Aurea know how I feel about you.˃

˂It cannot be, Malefor.˃

˂You are my Dragonfly, and I know your responsibility you have for me. But that's not why I love you. It's your wisdom, you personality, who you are that I love. It may be unconventional and taboo, but I love you Aurea, which is why I cherish every moment you are in my mind.˃

˂I… I love you too Malefor. But nothing can ever be between us.˃

˂I don't care about your size. I just want our love to be mutual, for I know it is beautiful. And I don't mind if I have to hide it. What we have between us has always been spiritual. Why can't our love be, too?˃

˂I think your hormones are increasing. They're making you mad with love.˃

˂Can't help the way I feel about you.˃

˂You have your whole life ahead of you my young Dragon. Don't fall in love with me, it won't amount to anything.˃

˂I don't care about marring another Dragon and having children. I know how I feel about you Aurea, and I accept the limitations of that. Why can't you?˃

˂Because I'm your Dragonfly, Malefor. My duty is protect you at the coast of my own life. My life's purpose is to serve you, not be in love with you.˃

˂You said you loved me just moments ago. And you will always be my equal and not my servant in my eyes. Aurea, I know you have to have some of the same feelings I have. I believe I can sense these feeling in you.˃

˂Please don't do this Malefor. It cannot be.˃

˂Says who! What, my Elders, who are content to cover up my race's greatest atrocity to justify living in this realm? Is it them who have set up this boundary between us. Or is it you? Tell me, make me believe that you don't love me the way I love you. Only then I will stop.˃

˂I… I can't love you Malefor. And it's not because of any other Dragon, but because of the commitment I've made to you.˃

˂That is not an excuse. I never asked for you to devote your own life towards me. I'm grateful for it, but I would forfeit your protection if it meant we could be together.˃

˂My loyalty to you is permanent. It cannot be undone.˃

˂So this it. You're just going to push me away.˃

˂Malefor, I…˃

˂Fine Aurea, I get it.˃

Aurea could feel the anger and bitterness in her Dragon. And it hurt her as well, because of how linked she was with his life force. She did love him, more than anything in the world.˃

˂Malefor…˃

˂Just… get out of my head, okay. I don't feel like talking anymore.˃

˂I'm pregnant.˃

˂Wait, what? If you loved someone else you should have just said so. How long ago was this? How long have you been with another Dragonfly?˃

˂My relationship with Ardescere is… platonic. We only matted because it was my time to reproduce. I know, it's… _weird_ , and he has nothing to do with my decision not to love you Malefor. I just, I wanted to tell you this today that is all. And when Sparx hatches, I wanted you to see him or her.˃

˂I'd… I'd be honored Aurea.˃

˂So you're also fighting for Sparx's safety when you confront the Sorcerer. Remember that.˃

˂I will.˃

* * *

"I'm almost insulted. They sent a child to confront me."

"Sorcerer, I know what happened between our two species centuries ago. I know we Dragons wronged your people. But I also know you haven't come here to _talk_ this out. We both can wield the power of the Convexity. So I'm warning you, If we start this, I will have no choice but to take you down, even if I don't want to."

"Not very threatening words my young purple Dragon. So you do know what your kind has done to mine, surprising. You murder almost all of us; you steal our land, and take our destiny from my ancestors. And you stand here in defense of your kind. Hypocrite and offensive! You have no honor, you are not a warrior! I've come here to avenge my fallen ancestors at the hands of yours, and you speak to me as if you are in the right!"

Malefor waivered under the words of his opponent. "What my ancestors have done to your kind was wrong. But that doesn't give you the right to harm the citizens of Avalar. You're fight is with me. Let's Let fate decide if your kind or mine shall live on."

"Let's young Dragon!"

* * *

It almost killed him. The Sorcerer, he was so powerful, so full of hate and driven to avenge his people. And even after all he was taught by his elders, even with his mastery of the Convexity, it came down to sheer will to end the fight. Malefor's horn's dug deep into the Sorcerer's chest, as his magical staff tore through Malefor's underbelly and appeared stained red out of his back. They both dropped to the floor on the brink of death.

Malefor began to crawl away after removing the staff from his chest. He was going to die, but he had stopped the Sorcerer, at the coast of his own life.

˂Malefor!˃

˂I'm… I'm not going to make it Aurea. I'm sorry… That I didn't make it through this.˃

˂No Malefor, I'm sorry. But this is why I live, to ensure your survival. Even at the coast of mine.˃

˂No. No! Don't… You have to live, for… Sparx. Please, don't die for me!˃

˂I did love you Malefor. Always know that.˃

˂Aurea! Don't do this! Don't die for me!˃ Malefor tried to shake her off, but he couldn't. His wounds began to heel, as Aurea sacrificed her life force to save the Dragon she swore to protect and eventually fell in love with. She shifted from a golden glow to blue, then to a green before she sacrificed all of herself to heal Malefor's mortal wounds.

˂Aurea! Aurea!˃ "Aurea!" She was gone and he was alive. She had fulfilled her purpose, and it left Malefor in agony. He screamed out in anger as he held the love of his life in his paws.

* * *

The purple dragon flew away, and the Sorceress approached her father.

"Daddy! Daddy! Are you alright."

"My little Sorceress. My only child, Dionaca," The Sorcerer whispered to his daughter, "avenge me. With my final breath, I bestow upon you all the power I have. Use it. Kill every last damn Dragon. Make them… make them pay for what they did to our race."

The power surged into the Sorceress' young body as tears dripped from her eyes. Her father passed away, and she found her purpose. She watched the Dragon disappear over the horizon. It had taken her father from her. They would pay! Ever one of them!

Her hatred was unwavering, and as she grew up, her purpose never changed. Eventually with the power she gained from her father, she would achieve immortality and murder every Dragon she encountered until they fled from the Forgotten Realms and returned to the original six Dragon Realms. She would murder ever Dragonfly to cut their power off from all Dragonkind. She would enslave almost all of Avalar and rule it as her own. She searched tirelessly for a way to breach into the original six Dragon Realms. But there was always one Dragon, a large powerful purple Dragon who eluded her. His existence was an insult to her honor, but for centuries she tried to murder him but to no avail. And then one day he came to her and warned her of another purple Dragon born in the Dragon Realms.

And Malefor knew that Spyro's death by the Sorceress' hands would be the revenge she needed to avenge her father. After Aurea's death, Malefor had lost the only thing he truly loved. She was taken from him because of the Sorcerer, and for a millennia, Malefor had become the most dangerous Dragon in existence, mirroring the Dragon Tyrannous who had destroyed the Sorcerer's heritage and ancestry. And for millennia, Malefor had nothing to love, except for the daughter of the very being he was told to kill by his Elders.


	18. Because Spyro Disappeared Part 3

**Chapter 18: Because Spyro Disappeared Part 3**

 _What he had saved her from, that path Malefor had started her on… She owed him her life. Instead he would have her heart._

 _"I love you Spyro."_

 _"I love you, too, Cynder."_

* * *

It had been mildly difficult and took a bit longer than Cynder anticipated, but now Ripto lay underneath her, moments away from death. Her master had been very specific: be Ripto's tool to unearth and destroy the resistance, and when the rebels fell execute Ripto. But Cynder wanted to know something before she carried out her master's instructions. Ripto had claimed that he knew all there was to know about her. She would make him tell her everything, or else Ripto's last few moments of life would be in the worst pain he could ever imagine.

"Talk. I want you to tell me everything you know about me."

"Malefor… he, he will betray you."

Cynder dug her claws into Ripto's chest and began to pull downwards slowly, creating four parallel lines as Ripto screamed in agony. "Mention my master's name one more time, and _this_ will happen to your face." Cynder again pressed her right front paw on top of Ritpo, pressing down hard against his chest, making it difficult for him to breath and somewhat prevented the scars she created on his chest from oozing blood in order to prolong captive's life for a few minutes longer. "Tell me what you know, now."

"Malefor…" Cynder pressed down on Ripto's chest hard because he mentioned her master's name again, but allowed him to continue without further interruption. "Agh… eight years ago, you're grandfather offered you to Malefor after you were laid by your mother to appease him."

"Why?"

"Be… because your Grandfather worshiped him. Malefor believed you would have exceptional control over the Convexity when you grew up, as a purple male Dragon does, and demanded to have you."

"How do you know this?"

"Because I was the one who murdered your mother and delivered you to Malefor."

"So eight years ago, when the purple Dragon Malefor foresaw to be born was abducted and destroyed; and he also set in motion for me to be stolen from the Dragon Realms? That isn't possible; I'm much older than eight years."

Ripto took whatever satisfaction he could from Cynder's momentary remorse and chuckled. "You're current age is a result of Malefor's… _tampering_. You're father, Ignitus, was tasked with rescuing that unfortunate unborn purple Dragon from the thieves Malefor convinced the Sorceress to send, and in the process Ignitus' wife's fate was left to me. And the worst of it is you're grandfather Red, a member of the Dragon Elder's, intentionally tasked his son with perusing those three thieves, making it easier for me to abduct you, kill your mother, and deliver you to your _precious_ master." Ripto coughed up blood before he continued with whatever moxie he had left to taunt Cynder. "You call him your master, but he has ruined your life. For whatever perverted reason [coughs again], he has made you his slave. I bet he plans to rape you when you grow older! It's what you deserve!"

Ripto laughed as loud as he could, Before Cynder set him ablaze. She moved away from the flaming caucus and stood still, lost in thought as Ripto shriek in pain and eventually died. She didn't want it to be true, but she searched her feelings and knew it to be so. Cynder had been completely obedient and loyal to her master for her entire life. But in this moment, she wondered what her life could have been like had she never been abducted from the Dragon Realms. It… It didn't matter. This was her life, this was her purpose. Malefor was waiting for a response and Cynder won't delay him. As Ripto had done minutes ago, she used his spell to summon a ghostly image of her master to speak to. After a few moments, he appeared and she spoke.

"Your will has been carried out master. All of Avalar's resistance leaders have been executed, and I dealt with Ripto."

"I expected nothing less, Cynder. I have one… final task for you. Then your purpose will be fulfilled. Are you ready, my apprentice?"

"What is your bidding, my master?"

"The Six Dragon Realms are protected by an insurmountable barrier which for millennia has kept the Sorcerer and me, despite our massive power, out of those six realms. If orchestrated correctly, a few meager thieves may momentarily slip through this barrier unnoticed and carry out orders. But today, however, this barrier will fall by your hands. As a Dragon who was born within those walls years ago, you will be able to enter unimpeded. With the full power of the convexity surging through you; you will be able to tear down the wall which has kept me out for so long from within. Today will be the day I achieve my lifelong dream."

Cynder acted surprised, although she had already found this out from Ripto moments ago, "I was born in the Dragon Realms?"

"A story for another time, Cynder. For now, your fate lies with the Dragon Realms. Once you've arrived and began to tear down the barrier, deal with any Dragon who attempts to stop you. The fall of the barrier will attract the attention of the Sorceress. In Artisans… I will confront her."

"As you command, master."

Malefor's image disappeared and Cynder made her way out of Ripto's castle. She exited via a window and made the long flight to six distant remote islands.

* * *

As her master foretold, Cynder passed through the invisible barrier and landed in her home. She felt the familiarity of the place, it was palpable. Even if she was still cocooned in her egg the last time she was her, she still illogically recognized the place. Cynder landed on the edge of an island and began what she was instructed to do. She channeled her rage, her anger, focused it and allowed it to control her, as her master had taught her. Using her emotions, she reached outwards and searched for the Convexity, tugged at it and drew it within. It gave her strength as the energy poured into her and became her own to wield. But before she could start to breach the seal of the Dragon Realms, a voice stopped her.

"It's been a long time, but you've returned." In a swift motioned Cynder took to the air and attacked the red Dragon behind her with a torrent of flame and then tackled him to the ground. Her claws dug into his wings and chest, and the unsuspecting Dragon slid across the ground bleeding and seriously wounded. Cynder then stood in front of who had confronted her, ready to finish him off. But he spoke as calm as before, and Cynder halted her attack.

"I had a dream, a premonition that my daughter would be the reason the world would fall completely into chaos, yet be the one who helps restore it. Despite the evil that has entrapped her soul, who she truly was could never be tampered. Despite all that Malefor's done to her, I would always love her."

Cynder looked at the Red Dragon beneath her, and came to the obvious realization. "You're my father, Ignitus, aren't you?"

"I saw… saw a world where you overcame the hatred and anger placed within you and stood against the monster that enslaved you. I saw a world where you fell in love and lived the life you deserved. Together, you and he stopped Malefor. But I failed to save him in time, prevented that world from being truth, and lost your and your mother because of it. I'm sorry Cynder. None of this ever should have happened to you. But I still believe you can end this." Her father was wincing in pain and struggled to breath. He began to wheeze as he inhaled, but managed to pull out a small brown satchel which was tied around his waist and reached it out for Cynder to grab. Cynder outstretched her left front paw and her father rested the small brown bag on it. "Malefor never had an opportunity at happiness, it was taken from him when he was young and now he is too forgone. But with this, you can choose to set things right. As my final wish, I… [coughs violently], I ask you use this spell and send this Dragon Egg to its rightful home. Goodbye daughter, I know you will make the right choice. You will free yourself from your oppression." Ignitus held out his hand, and Cynder was flooded with a memory that wasn't hers.

 _"I love you, Spyro"_

The Dragon she would fall in love with was named Spyro, the Dragonfly's name was Sparx, and Ignitus wanted me to use this spell he taught me to send it away to, a place where things were the way they were… An _alternate reality_. If I desired, I could be the one to free myself from Malefor plus save the world, by sending this Dragonfly, Sparx, to a place where he could guide Spyro back here. It didn't make sense but I understood what my father _believed he_ was offering me. But it was too late, I already had my purpose. Cynder grabbed the bottom of the brown bag and held it upside down, a small larva landed on her paw and she looked at it.

 _"I love you, too, Cynder."_

" _Vocat divisionem in spatio et tempore, ut domum hanc creaturam!_ " With a huge exertion of will, more than Cynder expected, she used the power of the Convexity to open a rift in time and space, and the Dragonfly larva in her hand disappeared. This was her father's final wish, however ridiculous it was, Cynder felt she owed this it to him. Winded from her previous spell but not yet completely exhausted, Cynder proceeded with what her master had instructed of her and began again to tear down the Dragon Realm's barrier.

 _With Cynder's help, Sparx was delivered to another reality. He would have to wait a hundred thousand years in, but eventually he was reunited with the Dragon he was destined to protect. It was then up to Spyro if he would return and save the love of his life he didn't even know existed._


	19. The Days Before the Past is Rewritten

**Chapter 19: The Days Before the Past is Rewritten**

"So Coco says the Time Twister is a few days from being ready. What is it like, stepping into one of those bubbles Crash? Is it disorientating?"

[It's... like jumping off a cliff in complete darkness.]

"That doesn't sound too bad."

[Well I don't have wings or a glowing protector. Or at least mine doesn't glow… usually.]

"I'm nervous, but at the same time excited. Weird hugh?"

[This is hard for me, know that Spyro. But you are making the right decision... I'm proud of you, and will think about you every day you're gone.]

"I can always come back Crash. As N-Gin explained, I'm heading to an alternate dimension where any temporal effects I cause there won't take effect here. Who knows? Maybe you could visit the Dragon Realms with me some time. You can add it to the list of places and times you've visited."

[Goodnight Spyro. I'll worry about you when you leave. And will miss you every day.]

"This what I was born to do. A lot happened to my time in my absence, and it's up to me to fix it. But Crash… I will miss you and your sister while I'm gone, too. But fortunately this isn't a permanent goodbye. Whenever I can, when all is right in my time, I'll come backhome, I promise."

Crash looked at the door frame for a moment before he answered Spyro. [Maybe]… "Ga uh-d n- ni ght Sp I- ro."

"Goodnight Crash."

Crash smiled at Spyro for a moment before he left his room, hiding a brief flash of grief from his someone he considered as his son. Spyro exhaled and looked halfway between his bedroom door and the floor as he sat down on all fours atop his bed. He knew he had to do this, and his parents agreed with him. All the death, all the destruction caused because he disappeared… things couldn't be left that way even if it had occurred in an alternate timeline. He was a hero after all, or at the minimum inspired to become one, selfless like the bandicoot who raised him (though what Spyro was dealing with did seem just a little bit more monumental, but that was besides the point). Yet Spyro wondered if he was up to the challenge. It seemed like such an impossible journey to complete with such powerful adversaries standing in his way. He turned over and laid on his back while looking at the ceiling. Sparx also approached and landed on the corner of the bed. After Aku-Aku had held a psychic conversation between himself, Sparx, Spyro, Coco, and Crash; his Dragonfly had remained silent, presumably unable to speak. Since then, it had been a little weird having the little guy follow him around for the past four days. But Sparx grew on Spyro over time. Potentially Crash's lack of speech helped Spyro get accustomed to having another mute around.

"So you really waited over a hundred thousand years just to see me. You must believe I can save another world, right Sparx?"

As expected, Sparx didn't answer; he just looked at Spyro.

"So we're both returning home in a couple of days. What I have to do… it seems like so much for just one Dragon to overcome. But I guess that's what you're for, hugh; to back me up if I ever falter; a glowing light to guide help guide me on this journey. Poetic."

Sparx continued to stare at Spyro.

"I'm sorry if I'm bothering you Sparx, though I couldn't tell if I was anyway." he looked at the Dragonfly, trying to gauge his mood but couldn't. "[Sighs]… I wonder what my past self was like all those years ago in… umm… this reality? I wonder if I've changed at all because of my upbringing?" Spyro's own question made him pause. Am I any less prepared to deal with all the dangers ahead of me because of my time spent away from the Dragon Realms? What if I failed or worse was killed? My past self a hundred thousand years ago didn't fail, but would I? Spyro was starting to become nervous. Sparx flew from where he was resting and landed on the windowsill. Spyro tracked him in the air and noticed he landed next to a red book: The Dragon Atlas, Coco's birthday gift to him a couple of days ago. He never had a chance to read it once Aku-Aku and Sparks warned himself, Coco, and Crash of Uka-Uka's plans several days ago.

"I guess now's a good a time as ever to figure out what's in my birthday present Sparx." The book wasn't awfully long; there'd be a chance Spyro could finish it two or three days. He got up and picked up the book with his mouth (those "thumbs" Crash has do seem to be quite the nice appendages. I guess having wings is the tradeoff I'm paying, all well). Spyro placed the book at the end of his bed and he got into a comfortable position. Sparx landed next to the book and provided adequate lighting for Spyro to read.

"Thanks. Wait, let me guess, you guided me to this book. I wouldn't be surprised, with you being the silent type and all." Sparx didn't respond. "Alright, where to start?" Spyro opened the front cover and tried to find the table of contents only to notice the first few pages were blank. Spyro quickly flipped through the next several pages only to find that they were all blank as well. "What the heck?" Spyro stared at the book in disbelief. "Oh, well this is helpful!" Spyro sighed and began thinking about tomorrow. The Sorceress… Red… Malefor, how am I supposed to stop beings as powerful as they? How did my past self-do so already? Spyro glanced at the book again to see words start to appear magically. He looked closer in shock at what was happening, and sure enough text was forming on the two open pages and the subsequent afterwards once he checked. "You know about this Sparx?" He looked at the Dragonfly and then at the book once more. "You know what? I'm just going to assume you did. Well, let's find out what the magic book has to tell."

* * *

It was a tight race, but once again Spyro was able to beat Crash. They had been together most of the day, doing a variety of things: performing aerial stunts, exploring the oceans, Crash had even tried to get Spyro to play a cart racing game, but Spyro couldn't grip the controller properly. Crash's hoverboard Coco had given to him a week ago descended and settled softly on the ground as Spyro landed next to him.

"Seems as if I win again Crash. Although I'm starting to get the feeling that you're letting me win."

[I don't think there's any shame in losing a race to a Dragon.]

"No, I guess there's not" Spyro responded boastfully with a grin on his face. "Although Sparx is able to keep up with me just fine." Sparx was hovering above Spyro's right shoulder, and didn't respond.

[Apparently he'll keep up with you your entire life. That's dedication. It's admirable, really. Glad he's returning with you to the past.]

"It's a little… unnerving knowing that someone I've only known for a week will literally sacrifice his own life to protect mine. But it's also inspirational. So thanks Sparx."

˂Y 're w me Sp o.˃

"You're going to have to think louder Sparx, or however this telepathic stuff works."

˂Y u h ve o ncen-r-te m re. Do orry, I kn w ll be -ed so .˃

[I think he said linked?]

"You're picking up on this, too?"

[Bad signal I guess.]

"Ha! Try a different frequency Sparx. Or maybe I'm just getting a bad reception as well. Why was it that Aku-Aku was able to have such a strong psychic conversation with us but not Sparx?"

[Aku-Aku is centuries old. Sparx is as old as you... well has been out of his larva for eight years. Guess the skill comes with age. And I've known Aku-Aku for ten years, so maybe it depends on the length of a relationship.]

"Makes as much sense as time travel, and I've spent a lot of time reading Coco's notes. Anyway, you think your sister and N-Gin are done with their preparations on the Time Twister Crash?"

[If anyone can figure that machine out, it's Coco. Although having someone around like N-Gin seems to have bolstered her confidence.]

"I offered to help your sister and N-Gin, considering I leant Coco a hand in making the hoverboard you keep eating my dust with. But Coco declined my offer to help."

"Wha… w- w-eye?"

"She told me that the working on the Time Twister was a massive endeavor which required a vast understanding of theoretical astrophysics and quantum entanglement. And that all of what she knew on the subject was what N-Gin has been explaining to her over the past week along with what she researched in the eight years since the first Time Twister exploded. At first I thought that Coco didn't believe I would have been of much use, but then I started thinking Coco wanted me off the project for a different reason."

[You think my sister is keeping something from you?]

"I had a suspicion. Sparx and Aku-Aku a week and a half ago told us of the tragedies in my… timeline because I disappeared, hence why I'm going back to fix it. Yet they didn't really elaborate on exactly what happened, just that my disappearance lead to the downfall of the Dragons. So I thought maybe Coco was keeping me away from the Time Twister because she wanted to spare me of the horrid details involving my disappearance, which doesn't make any sense. If Coco agrees that I should go back and save my kind, she would want to inform me of everything that changed because of my disappearance and show me what I could do to prevent it. So I confronted her a few days ago about this, wanting to know the real reason she was keeping me out of the loop."

"Wha- at da- id" [What did she say?]

Spyro paused for a moment and they both stopped walking. They were nearing where the Time Twister was currently housed, in the top floor of what is now the remnants of Cortex's Castle. Spyro had decided to land near the front entrance and walk to the top to the surprise of Crash. This was because Spyro wanted to talk with his father and best friend alone. "She told me everything. The tens of millions of creatures that suffer all because of such a small discrepancy in my time. My home went to hell because I disappeared. ALL life in my time is eventually extinguished within twenty years of my disappearance… And the worst part is that it is caused by two Dragons: An older purple Dragon such as myself and the love of my life."

Crash wasn't sure how to respond, mostly because he felt entirely responsible for what Spyro had just said. It had been weighing on him ever since Aku-Aku held the psychic conversation. That because of his actions, despite the intent, he had caused the extinction of the Dragon race. And now Crash knew for sure just how horrible things turned out. And now Spyro said that 'the love of his life' was responsible. What Spyro meant by this he wasn't entirely sure, but he had a feeling he somehow already knew and this caused him even further dread. [This… love, it's a Dragon you… the 'you' of the past fell in love with?]

"Cynder… Most of what I know about myself in the past I know because of the Dragon Atlas, Coco's gift to me for my birthday several days ago. A very large section of the book chronicles my life, from my childhood to my eventual confrontation with that Purple Dragon, Malefor. However, the Atlas also has an obituary of my life written by the Dragon I fell in love with, spent my life with, raised kids with, and eventually widowed. I spent almost all of the past two nights crying while reading it. Knowing what my life could have been like… and what happened to her because I disappeared. It's… it's…

Spyro at this point couldn't hold his emotions in check, and it made Crash ache with anguish.

"Sp- I ro. eh- eym…"

"Don't apologize Crash!" Spyro said quite sternly to Crash's surprise. "I don't ever want you to apologize to me about letting me be a part of your family ever again! A lot of terrible things happened because I disappeared; people I would have known and loved corrupted or killed because of it. But the Spyro of the past never had parents. He never had a family that loved him growing up until after saving the world and losing a lot of friends in the process. I consider myself lucky… blessed to have had parents growing up, even if I am adopted. And with the Time Twister, maybe I can also save Cynder and know what it's like to have a family of my own as well. The real reason Coco didn't want me to work on the Time Twister is because she asked me to spend as much of my last few days on N Salinity Island with you as possible. She told me that if I wanted to, I had her blessing to stay in my time period and never come back." Coco had shared this sentiment with Crash previously, but he hadn't known that his sister had told Spyro about it until now. But Crash didn't interrupt, and Spyro continued. "Honestly I don't know what I will do or what will happen when I return to my time. If everything will work out or if I will fail. But I took Coco's advice anyway. Because for the last few days that I'm your son, I want to cherish them. They've meant a lot to me… Thank you Crash, for raising me the best you could. I know you would have done the same with Tawna."

Crash was at the brink of tears and smiling. So was Spyro. Opposite emotions simultaneously displayed; and like the first day Spyro ever spoke seven years ago, he and Crash tearfully hugged.


	20. Cynder's Fate

**Chapter 20: Cynder's Fate**

The barrier fell, and Cynder waited for her Master to arrive. Her father, Ignitus, still lay on the verge of death a few yards away, wheezing with every breath, struggling to remain conscious.

"You… did the right thing Cynder. I… love you."

"All I did was make the Dragonfly disappear. And you're fortunate I'm letting you live."

"I don't… feel very alive." Ignitus coughed violently as he tried to get upright. He got about halfway before he grimaced in pain and held his position. "You… saw it didn't you? The way things were supposed to be. This was never supposed to be your Fate. A chance at happiness, a chance a peace, a chance at love; that was your destiny my daughter."

"I am where I'm supposed to be, a servant to the world's agent of change."

"I… I failed you Cynder. I failed [begins tearing] your mother. She told me you would do such grand things with your life, and I failed both of you. I'm sorry Cynder."

Cynder stared at her father without emotion. He losing his grip on life. His heart rate was dangerously low, he was beginning to fade, and she could sense it. She killed him. "No Ignitus… your father failed you."

Ignitus faltered for a moment as his breathing became shallower. But he was able to respond. "Red… my father also saw a vision for your future. He ensured it became truth, that you became Malefor's. But I can't hate the Dragon that gave me life. Nor can I hate the Dragoness I gave life to."

He was a few moments from death. Cynder approached her father to better hear any of his last words. But as she approached, a large gust of wind came rushing in from behind her. Malefor had arrived.

"Artisans… home sweet home."

Cynder turned around and prostrated herself in the presence of her master. Malefor casually approached and took note of the Dragon behind his slave.

"I never knew you had compassion Cynder. Why is this Dragon still alive?"

Cynder quickly turned around and inhaled in preparation to set her father ablaze, but Malefor stopped her before she could.

"Wait, if memory serves me correctly, this is Ignitus: The Guardian of Fire, and your father."

"Male- for" Ignitus said almost inaudibly.

"In the flesh."

"Sparx, isn't here."

Malefor looked at the dying Guardian coldly, curios as to how Ignitus was aware Malefor was looking for his Dragonfly's son from one thousand years ago.

"Where is he?"

"You… ever wonder what his mother would think of you now?"

"His MOTHER," Malefor said angrily before regaining his composure, "can't feel anything anymore."

"You've forgotten why she loved you, because you would do anything to protect life and defend the innocent. You were the greatest Dragon that ever lived. And she gave her life for yours, still believing that. And now look at what you've become."

"I DIED FOR DRAGONKIND! I gave my life in service of a bunch of liars and all I ever got in return was the death of the very being I loved most and banishment from the Dragon Realms."

"You murdered your mentor Incendious. You believed you could use dark magic to trade the life force of the very person you cared most about for the love you lost. And now you though you could do the same with Sparx. But all that resulted in your quest to bring Aurea back was you becoming a monster."

"A monster, hugh." Malefor now stood above Ignitus and lowered his front paw onto the helpless Dragon's throat, choking him. "You think I wanted to kill Incendious, my father figure; that I enjoyed taking his life like some kind of sadist, that I didn't try to find an alternative to bring Aurea back? The true monsters were the Elders who sent an eight year old to fight the most powerful sorcerer on the planet instead of an army. We Dragons are all monsters. Winged creatures who can rain fire and death from the skies, capable of killing hundreds of thousands in our lifetimes. Our ancestors did so, Tyrannous did so, your father did so, I have done so, and so has your daughter. And no, I wouldn't have used Sparx as a means to revive Aurea. I would have just ended him, so I could spare him from being the last Dragonfly alive."

Ignitus, asphyxiated, died a few moments later. Malefor removed his front paw from Ignitus' throat and faced Cynder. "What did you do with Sparx? Why was Ignitus looking at you when he said he wasn't here?"

Cynder, knowing she may have unintentionally disobeyed her master, braced for her punishment as she told him the truth. "Ignitus told me Sparx was the key to realigning my future, and instructed me to use a spell he placed within my mind to send him to an alternate reality. It sounded absurd and I didn't believe him. But he filled my mind with false memories of a young purple Dragon named Spyro whom I seemed to love and I carried out my father's dying wish. He tricked me into deceiving you, and I am sorry."

Cynder collapsed to the floor in agony as her master began killing her. He began walking towards Artisans as Cynder continued to be enveloped in horrible pain. After fifteen seconds, it stopped, and Cynder mightily struggled to get to her feet. Looking onward towards his destination, Malefor spoke to Cynder without looking at her.

"I never told you about Aurea or Sparx for I felt it wasn't necessary. Nevertheless, you facilitated the enemy, Cynder. I hope you use better judgment within the next few hours, for the Sorceress will show up here soon. Currently the Gnorks from the sixth island are ravaging the place per my instruction. We both will destroy as many of them and the Dragons they're fighting as we can and wait for our true enemy to arrive. Our destinies converge here. Soon, I will have what I always wanted, and you will have served your purpose. Are you ready, my apprentice?

"Yes… my master."

* * *

The barrier had fallen. After a thousand years the Sorceress would finally be able to fulfill her lifelong purpose of avenging her father. Her father's staff was firmly gripped in her right hand, her crown, cape, and ruff grandiosely portrayed the colors of her people, if there were any left. She was the last of her kind, and it would stay that way till the end of time. But for the Dragons, they would not be any of them left after today if she could help it. With a large exertion of will she used her scepter to open a rift in front of her which would take her, Bianca, and several Rhynocs into Artisans. Malefor would be waiting for her there. Bianca and the Rhynocs were just a formality. Alone the Sorceress would confront Malefor.

She emerged from the portal to be confronted by a desolate and destroyed Artisans, littered with the dead bodies of Dragons and Gnorks alike. A few dozen years away stood the purple adversary which had haunted her for the past several hundred years, Malefor. She took a deep breath and replayed the moment she lost her father in her mind.

" _With my final breath, I bestow upon you all the power I have. Use it. Kill every last damn Dragon. Make them pay for what they did to our race._ "

"When I came to your palace eight years ago and warned you of the next purple Dragon to be born, that was me extending an olive branch. Dianca, I've have something I should confess to you before we do this. You deserve to know."

How did Malefor know my name? Only my father called me by my real name. It was impossible! "You have nothing more to tell me Malefor. Nothing today will deter me from my destiny. Today, all Dragons die!"

"You were there, watching a thousand years ago, when your father was killed. The feeling is unimaginable. To have the one thing you love most in life taken from you. The unquenchable anger, the frustration, the rage bubbling beneath the surface. It never goes away, never nullifies over time. This plight we both share."

"You cannot even begin to understand what I've gone through! Do not stand there and sympathize with me, do not call me Dianca, and do not even for one moment think you will walk away from this alive!"

"You want to know why I know your name, Sorceress? Because your father mentioned it before we fought a thousand years ago. You're father caused me the same pain you have. In that final moment as we both were dying by each other's hand, the love of my life sacrificed her life so I could live: my dragonfly. That day changed both of you and me, and has led us here to this moment. Fate has brought us together."

The Sorceress was tearing up. No one behind her could hear or see her crying for the first time since her father died, only Malefor could, the Dragon she should hate with every fiber of her being.

"It was you, wasn't it?" She knew now it was true. A thousand years and she was oblivious to this, presuming the purple Dragon which took her father from her had also died so long ago. But know it was so obvious. "YOU TOOK HIM FROM ME!" Only now did the Sorceress' subordinates notice that their mistress' composure was broken.

"Yes, and it was the worst day of my life. It caused me to become the monster I am today: heartless, alone, vindictive. I hate myself with every fiber of my being, as you hate me. And as I told you eight years ago, you can't hate something unless you love it as well."

"Urg… AHHH!" The Sorceress screamed as she lifted her scepter into the air. "I'M GOING TO MAKE YOU SUFFER!" Her scepter glowed bright green and pointed it at Malefor, ready to blast him with a devastating magical beam, but Cynder appeared in front of Malefor and with all her strength formed a magical shield in-between her and the Sorceress. The magical blast rammed into Cynder's shield and began fragmenting and sent several smaller projectiles in all directions behind Cynder as her shield held. As soon as the main beam dissipated, Cynder lunged forward using her wings and charged furiously at the Sorceress. Dianca slammed her staff into the ground and Cynder bounced off a shield of the Sorceress'. She then swung her staff at Cynder and used it to send the Dragoness flying backwards, drawing blood. The Rhynocs the Sorceress brought with her began to panic and flee the battlefield. Bianca, terrified also fled, but as she did so Malefor appeared in front of her and his massive jaws clenched them around her head. He tore her head from her neck, and proceeded to spit out her head. He then patiently watched Cynder and Dinaca.

"You meet your end today Sorceress," Cynder said calmly, "per my master's instructions."

"I AM the most powerful sorceress in existence! And I will have my revenge against your bastard master, starting with you!"

The Sorceress and Cynder charged at each other, the Sorceress' staff clanking with Cynder's claws, causing sparks to fly. Cynder retreated upwards and covered the Sorceress in a conflagration of black fire. Cynder then dogged to the left to avoid a deadly beam of energy from the Sorceress and landed on the ground to the left of the her. Danica emerged from the smoke and singed grass which Cynder had set ablaze with her cape and ruff signed black, but her body unburned. Cynder began to channel the Convexity through her, angering her and amplifying her magic.

"You think you can use the convexity against me Dragon? I've been using it my entire life for one purpose!" A similar dark aura to Cynder's began to form around the Sorceress as well.

"A Dinopotamus can never defeat a Dragon. That's what you father failed to realize, that's what your ancestors learned the hard way. You will not win, Dianca."

"Let's let fate decide, Dragon."

"Let's."

* * *

Cynder jaws clenched onto the Sorceress' shoulder and she screamed out in pain. Using her staff, she thrust it upwards frantically and it pierced clean through Cynder's right wing. The pain caused her to unclench her teeth on the Sorceress' shoulder and Dianca used the opportunity to directly hit Cynder with a devastating blast of dark energy. She tumbled on the ground several times before collapsing into a heap. Struggling to get up, the Sorceress slowly approached. Their fight had lasted thirty minutes, and both were completely exhausted.

"A thousand years of hatred as earned me this strength, little Dragon. For this reason no Dragon can stand up to me."

"I… I was the bait. Your injured and… exhausted. You stand no chance against… Malefor." Cynder struggled to say as she breathed heavy, each time grimacing because of the gaping, bleeding hole in her right wing."

"It's true." Malefor said behind the Sorceress. "She turned around to see his imposing figure behind her. It was true, in her current condition she was no match for him. She had been defeated, and her lifelong ambition thwarted by the same dragon who gave to her a thousand years ago.

"No! I will destroy you both!" The Sorceress focused all her malice at Malefor and launched a dark beam of energy at him, but he deflected the blast with his front claw with ease and began walking towards the Sorceress as Cynder approached from her flank. She was outnumbered and running out of time.

"I'm… I'm sorry father, I failed you. She dropped her staff and looked at Malefor with all her contempt."

Malefor smiled and purple pool of energy began to form in his mouth, which he fired at Cynder to the Sorceress' surprise. Cynder shrieked in agony before she collapsed to the ground.

"Cynder was right when she said she was the bait" Malefor said calmly to an astonished and bewildered Sorceress. "I didn't lure you to Artisans to kill you, I didn't try to deceive you when I gave you the opportunity to kill the latest purple Dragon eight years ago, and I didn't attack you for the past several centuries because I was not going to make the same mistake I made a thousand years ago with your father."

Cynder began to slowly recover from Malefor's attack, but she was utterly beaten. She couldn't defend herself, and was in incredible pain. Why? Why had her master attacked her?

"I waited a very long time for this moment. I waited for the right dragoness to be born which I could take for myself. I perfected her, stole her from her parents, trained Cynder to be my assassin, made her utterly loyal to me to a fault, and I did it all for you Dianca." She looked at Malefor in horror, what the hell was he up to? And she was in no condition to defend herself. She was at his mercy.

"What… the hell are you talking about?"

"I fell in love with a Dragonfly when I was younger. Our love was beautiful. It made my life whole. Aurea… I tried for decades to bring her back from the dead; I even murdered my mentor because I thought I could use an unholy spell to revive my soul mate in the place of someone else I cared about. But the hard truth was that our love was never meant to be. She was a servant to me, nothing more, nothing less. My efforts to bring her back were in vain, pointless and fruitless, and in doing so I became the monster I am now, unworthy of her love in the first place. And in the passing centuries I came to realize the only way to have closure, to no longer hate myself for what I've become, was to move on and love something else. To amend the mistake I made in killing your father by having you."

Malefor's claws dug deep into the Sorceress' chest and she fell backwards in agony.

"The only issue was you aren't a Dragon, and I've already made this mistake once. Fortunately, Cynder's offered to rectify the issue."

Cynder finally knew what her master's grand plan was. She had dedicated her life to him, unwittingly. And today, her usefulness had finally run out. All he wanted was my body, and the Sorceress mind. Somehow, Ripto was right. Hopefully, my father could be right, too. Her destiny wasn't meant to be this. Malefor stood above her, ready to finish Cynder off.


	21. Doing what's Rigth

**Chapter 21: Doing what's Right**

Crash let go of Spyro and stood up as Sparx hovered above. There weren't many more opportunities he'd have to hug his son, and the thought of never seeing him again was starting to overwhelm Crash. He rescued him from thieves, watched Spyro hatch, heard his first words, saw him fly, had the blessing of being there as he grew and matured, which filled a void in his life he never knew was vacant until this young purple Dragon came and filled it for him. But having the opportunity to be his surrogate father caused so much death and destruction in the past. Crash's happiness came at the expense of millions of lives, and that was something he couldn't live with. Spyro kept saying he would return to visit when things were right in his time, but Crash wasn't sure if that would be true… if he would allow it to be true.

"You don't think it's weird, do you Crash? When we hug? Like if I was to try to explain where I've been for the past eight years, that I was raised by an orange bipedal bandicoot a hundred thousand years in the future who I consider my father, other Dragons wouldn't understand?"

[Aku-Aku talks about Fate a lot. He says things never take place without a purpose; that somehow events always happen to maintain the balance between Order and Chaos. It's beyond me but I do understand one thing. Whether it was accidental or my Fate to meet you, it isn't weird that we hug. Although I do have to avoid the sharp horns on the top of your head, plus you tend to scratch my back with your claws on occasion.]

"Wow that was so dramatic yet anticlimactic."

[Guess I'm not as good at giving advice as an ancient spirit of Order.]

"Considering all the hurdles I have to overcome in my time, I'd say I could use some wisdom right about now."

"K- ur age." [Let it define your life, in the face of those who'd harm others, and to those whom you never let harm come to.]

"Okay, that was pretty good."

[I actually thought of it last night. I thought I should say something poetic before you left.]

"If you could actually speak."

[That joke is getting old.]

"I'll be sure to tell it again when I come back."

They approached Cortex's former laboratory which housed N-Gin's Time Twister Machine. He spent eight years reassembling this machine under the mental domination of Uka-Uka. But it turned out his Fate was different than what Uka-Uka intended, and now he and Crash's sister were going to use this device to send Spyro back to the Dragon Realms a hundred thousand years ago in an alternate reality. Crash opened the large door, and both he and Spyro stepped through the doorway to be greeted by the enormous machine that was the Time Twister. Its varying components, cables, power sources, and computer's controlling the massive device took up the majority of the room, but the central platform where the large spherical disruption in space time would form was clear. Crash and Spyro walked toward the central platform to be greeted by Coco and N-Gin who had been laboriously working on the Time Twister making sure it was operational and send Spyro and Sparx back in time safely without creating a new alternate reality in the process. Coco descended from a ladder she was on while N-Gin removed a pair of goggles as they both approached Crash and Spyro.

"Well, the machine is as functional and ready as it'll ever be" Coco said to her brother and adopted nephew.

"Well that's good to know, Coco. You and N-Gin have worked so hard on the Time Twister for quite a while now. I can never thank you two enough for doing this for me. And Crash also for all he's done for me. I do wish I could have helped on the Time Twister, though. The science involved seemed so interesting to learn."

Coco looked at Spyro and her brother solemnly. She remembered the conversation she had with Spyro a few days ago; when she told him the real reason she wanted him not to spend all his remaining time in the future working on the Time Twister. Her brother, even though he had been able to conceal it in the presence of Spyro, felt so guilty about all the horror he caused by bringing Spyro to the future. Crash couldn't spend all the remaining days Spyro had here sulking in shame. Coco had met this Crash before, when the love of his life, Tawna, died. Spyro meant so much to her brother now even though Crash thought it was wrong that Spyro was even with him. A few days saying a proper goodbye would do Crash so much good. To have closure, and know that Spyro was going back to fix what went wrong and maybe even come back to visit his father. Coco and Crash had discussed in private whether it was a good idea for Spyro to transit between this time and his; Crash was convinced that Spyro being here was a mistake and that he should return to his time and never come back. But Coco knew that wasn't true, and Crash was only saying that because he felt so guilty. So she pleaded with her brother in the final few days that Spyro remained here not to convince him to stay in the past. The decision was Spyro's to make, and whatever choice he made they should be happy with.

"Tell you what Spyro, I'll let you take all my notes on the Time Twister with you when you go back to the past. Sound fair?"

"Sounds fair."

"Fortunately," N-Gin continued in his metallic voice, "you won't need to master the inner workings of defying the laws of physics in order to return here if you wish. This device, a return pad, will open a portal back to this spot and time without any consequence to either your dimension or ours. If you choose to return here in say a few seconds after you depart to the past, you may. Or you could return with an offset of a year or longer to match the time you spend in your timeline."

Crash smiled upon hearing this confirmation. But the smile was not genuine; it was a façade in the presence of his son, a white lie.

"You'll explain fully how this thing works, right? I wouldn't want to be stranded in the Dragon Realms because I couldn't figure out how this thing worked."

"And you wanted to help fix the Time Twister? Don't worry Spyro, its voice activated, and there's detailed instructions along with my parting gift for you."

"Hey, I helped you build the gravity lens for Crash's hover board! I'm sure time is much easier to bend then gravity."

"That's an understatement!" Coco laughed. "Even with Cortex's memories implanted in your mind thanks to Uka-Uka, it took you eight years to build this thing, right N-Gin? And you weren't even finished with it yet when Crash, Spyro, and I confronted you."

"It is Cortex's greatest achievement. Building it helped me reconnect with him. It was difficult and for an unholy purpose, but I… we finished it. Thanks Coco, you really did help."

"You're welcome, N-Gin, though I had a purple, scaly motivation motivating me to help you finish building it."

"I'm flattered, really" Spyro said half sarcastically and half genuine. "So, are we going to fire this thing up or continue bonding? Either way is fine with me."

"Well…" Coco said not as happily as before, "there is something we have to talk about before you depart." Spyro noticed her demeanor change; this was serious.

"What is it Coco?" Spyro said worriedly.

"We've talked about what happened in your time because you disappeared, and how drastically it differs from our current timeline where you were never brought to the past. In order to revert all the catastrophes that have occurred because of your disappearance, the best moment in time to send you back to is right after Crash brings you forward in time. And that has some repercussions."

"Right after I was abducted? I've aged eight years since then, so I'd basically be eight years ahead of schedule. It's somewhat disappointing, but not that big a deal – especially if it means saving the lives of Cynder, Elora, Hunter, the Professor, Ignitus, basically everyone. It's a sacrifice I'm willing to make."

"That is correct Spyro. But there's also another consequence of sending you back to the moment after you were brought to the present. The Time Twister, to send any collection of matter back in time, shifts the Chrono and Zeta partials constituting the entropy within its traveler to 'align' all the mater present in the period of time of the set destination. This process doesn't violate the Law of Conservation of Matter, because when the payload of the Time Twister arrives in its time period, the amount of matter displaced by your arrival is destroyed, which is normally just the air of your immediate surroundings. No net amount of matter is added or removed from the universe you enter. However, because we are sending you back to a specific alternate universe without the intent of creating another parallel universe like my brother did eight years ago, the implications of sending your entropy back in time are a lot more complicated."

"What do you mean?" Spyro said concerned.

"If N-Gin and I were to send you back to a point in your alternate reality before you were brought to the present, there would be duplicate matter present. The molecules consisting of you and the molecules of the infant Spyro still within his egg and the environment around him which will become a part of your latter on in your life are both simultaneously present. The imbalance due to duplication would result in the destruction of all the duplicate molecules introduced to the universe, aka you would not survive the trip."

"So if I was sent to any moment in time before my egg was brought here, I wouldn't' survive. So what's the big deal, just don't send me that far back, right?"

"We won't, but remember that Sparx also intends to travel back with you to the past, and that is where a big problem is introduced." At this point Spyro could sense where Coco was going with this explanation, but he let her continue. "Sparx wasn't transferred to this reality until eight years after you were. If Sparx was sent to any point before he was brought to this reality, he would be killed. The only points in time where both of you can return safely to your time is after Sparx is sent to this reality by Cynder. And that would be too late to save everyone."

Spyro looked at his newest friend, realizing what this meant. He would be making this trip back to the past alone.

˂D—'t be –ad Sp—o. I sa-ficed a lot –o jo— you in the f—er. I c— m-ke o— m-re so you c— s-v- -e past.˃

"I don't know what to say Sparx. You're the main reason I am to return to the past anyway. Without you, I may have never known what happened to my time because I disappeared. I've only met a week and a few days, but you've grown on me little guy."

˂It's -e r-ght –ing to do.˃

"Fortunately there's a Sparx still in his larvae waiting for me back in my time."

"I see you and Sparx are starting to get the mental communication down." Coco said somewhat happily for Spyro, even though she knew Spyro was saying goodbye to this Sparx for a long time.

"Only in time for it not to matter much. Hopefully the other Sparx and I can get this mental thing down so I can speak with you properly when I return Sparx. [Sighs] Well, this is it right? Everything's ready for me to depart."

"It is Spyro" Coco said a little emotionally. Spyro smiled at her as they walked towards each other and hugged one more time. Once they let go, Spyro turned around and spoke to N-Gin.

"I understand what Cortex meant to you. He was lead done the path of evil by a force out of his control, and that took him from you. But with this Time Twister, I have the opportunity not to let that happen to someone I… will love. Thank you N-Gin."

"You're welcome Spyro."

And finally, Spyro turned to his father, Crash. He was tearing up; Spyro could see the tears dripping down his face. He wasn't sobbing, just remained in the back silently as everyone spoke earlier. So reserved, so full of grief, Spyro hoped his presence here helped him mend some of the wounds he carried through his life. Losing Tawna, it must have been so hard for him. Hopefully their friendship across lifetimes was what Crash needed to finally move on. "And I'll miss you the most while I'm gone, Crash. But promise me one thing before I return… father. Practice flying around with your hoverboard, so the next time we race you won't just let me win. You'll need it to beat me."

"Ee- I… pr- am- is." To which Spyro walked up to Crash and held out his paw and Crash shook it. This wasn't a permanent goodbye, no need for another tearful hug. Coco went up to the computer controlling the Time Twister, and began entering the geological coordinates and point in time in which she was going to send Spyro back in time. Crash watched within a good distance from the central platform, with Sparx hovering above his right shoulder. Both were saying goodbye to someone who shaped their life. Spyro, with the return platform placed in a backpack along with Coco's parting present strapped to his back, walked onto the central platform.

"Alright Spyro, are you ready?" Coco asked one final time.

"As ready as I'll ever be."

"Goodbye, Spyro. I wish you the best… nephew."

"I expect ice cream when we get back."

Coco pulled a lever, and a large spherical bubble appeared around Spyro, and his entropy was sucked into the portal, the image of his body disappearing as it shifted red before vanishing completely. The silence was now defining, and Crash no longer held back his grief. Spyro would never return - Crash had made sure that could never happen. It was the right thing to do.


	22. Because Spyro Reappeared

**Chapter 22: Because Spyro Returned**

It felt almost exactly as Crash described it, jumping off a cliff in complete darkness. The lack of any tactile sensation was surreal, even though the trip back to his time was supposedly instantaneous. A large spherical bubble appeared in the middle of a prehistoric swam and Spyro tumbled to the ground in a heap as the portal collapsed into a singularity behind him. Crash had also mentioned that landing gracefully once exiting one of these portals was quite tricky, since the sudden onset of gravity caused you to fall to the ground unprepared. Well he was right once again. Spyro laboriously got up and took a look at his surrounds. It was really happening, he had finally returned to his time, and had so much to do and so many menacing adversaries to defeat. And he was doing this, potentially endangering his life to save total strangers. No, that wasn't true. They were people he was meant to befriend, others who could have potentially been a part of his surrogate family had he never met Crash. Elora, Hunter, the Professor, Sheila, Bently, Byrd, Flame, Ember, Ignitus, Cynder… And for all of them Spyro found the courage to return to this time and be the hero he apparently was always meant to be. " _Courage in the face of those who'd harm others, and to those whom he'd never let harm come to,_ " the words Crash (communicated using sign language) rung inside Spyro's mind once more. Man, I've been here for ten seconds and I'm already starting to miss him. He inhaled slowly and then exhaled though his mouth calm himself and draw in his confidence. I'll be strong, for him and because of him. Spyro heard noises emerging from deeper within the dense woods; right on schedule Ignitus.

Ignitus saw a bright flash of light emitted in the distance where all the commotion had been and flew towards it. He had been tracking the three thieves who had stolen a Dragon Egg for quite a while, determined to find it before they delivered it to who he presumed was the Sorceress. That yet born Dragon's fate was intertwined with the fate of all Dragonkind. A lot of Dragons feared the return of another Purple, some other's embraced it. But if one thing was for certain, he or she deserved a chance at life, a chance to be the hero we so desperately need, or just live for his or herself. The prospect of destinies, to be burdened with the protecting every Dragon, Ignitus couldn't even imagine it what that would feel like. Being the Guardian of Fire was hard enough for himself, but to master all four Elements and be expected to put their life on the line for the greater good, it seemed like so much for just one Dragon. To have that kind of power with that level of responsibility, it was unfathomable.

Ignitus arrived at his destination and was astounded at what he found: a young, healthy purple Dragon of about eight to ten years standing where the missing Dragon's egg should be.

"So you're Ignitus?" the purple Dragon asked. "It's nice to finally meet you. I've… read a lot about you." It was actually happening, Spyro thought, there was another Dragon standing in front of him for the first time - large, intimidating - a future mentor and father figure of his. Any reservations Spyro had about returning home instantly vanished and was replaced with excitement.

"Whoever you are, it is very important that I find and rescue a stolen Dragon Egg before it falls into the wrong hands. You wouldn't have happened to see the group of thieves that stole it? They are in the area."

"Don't worry about the egg, Ignitus. It ended up in some very capable hands. It's a long story that I'm sure I'll be better able to explain later, but for right now, I'm the Dragon whose life you are trying to save."

"You're what? Look, I don't think you understand. The 'egg' I'm searching for was stolen from Artisan's not too long ago, and if I don't hurry that infant Dragon will be killed."

"That unborn infant was a purple Dragon, wasn't he? Prophesized to protect the Dragon Realms and eventually save the whole world from the previous purple incarnation, Malefor. Seems like so much for one Dragon, for one child. I hope both he and I are up for it."

Ignitus couldn't understand how this adolescent he'd never seen before knew this much. Almost like he knew as much about the unborn Dragon as he did. Could he really be Spyro? But how was that possible?

"How do you know all this? And if you truly are the Dragon I'm trying to rescue, then how are you… older?"

"We really don't have time for an explanation. What's important is that there weren't only three thieves who were able to sneak into the Dragon Realms today. You're wife and daughter are in grave danger, and if we don't hurry terrible things are going to happen to both of them."

Amid Ignitus' confusion, it took only a moment for him to process what this stranger had said. His wife and his daughter's lives might be in jeopardy.

"There is a portal arch not too far from here. If we hurry, we can get back to Artisans in less than five minutes."

As soon as Ignitus finished his sentence, Ignitus took off faster than Spyro had ever flown. Impressed for just a moment, Spyro followed and eventually was able to just barely catch up with him.

"You said my wife was in danger, explain."

"It's a mage named Ripto. He snuck into Artisans to capture your daughter and deliver her to Malefor."

"Cynder… This mage Ripto, I've heard of him before. He was banished from Avalar a while ago and seeks revenge against the inhabitants there. It doesn't make sense though. Why would Ripto be persuaded by Malefor to steal my daughter on the same day the Sorceress orchestrated another Dragon egg's capture? It can't be a coincidence. They've been mortal enemies for centuries? Why would they suddenly be working together?"

"The answer to that question is… disturbing. But it involves your daughter and I intend to stop Malefor from capturing her and turning her into his slave."

"I… thank you. Didn't catch your name, by the way."

"Spyro."

He even knew the Dragons name he was claiming to be. "You really are him, aren't you?"

"I promise I'll try my best explain what happened to me latter, though it isn't really easy to believe."

"I'll wait. I wouldn't know what I'd do if I lost Taika or our daughter. The portals just up ahead."

Ignitus landed next to a marble archway with the image of Artisans underneath it, which was making a low humming noise. Both he and Spyro walked forward through the portal and appeared in Spyro's new/old home. The feeling was unexplainable, and Spyro was lost in thought for a moment before he noticed that Ignitus didn't pause to soak in the scenery and instead was trying as fast as he could to get to his family. Spyro pursued, occasionally glancing at the splendor that was the land of Artisans. The green scenery, lushes plains, landmark water fountains and smooth hills. It was a far cry to the island setting Spyro has spent all of his life growing accustom to. Everything felt like home, like where he belonged all along. The though shamed him for a moment, before Spyro realized that he enjoyed both his old and new homes equally. They would both be a part of him, and he already lived for a while in one setting, there was no harm in discovering a new, more native setting as well. Eventually Spyro landed outside of a stone building he saw Ignitus enter. He went inside and immediately averted his eyes from the scene; they were too late.

Claw marks, splattered and trails of blood, a painting destroyed on the floor, shattered pottery, a young Dragoness severely wounded in the corner not moving. And an empty nest with which still had the imprint of an egg in the center of the room. A family shattered and destroyed. I was supposed to stop this, Spyro thought. I was going to save her, rewrite history, prevent Cynder from losing her mother. The thought of failure made Spyro become enraged.

"Taika… Taika!" Ignitus tried to stir he awake, but to no effect. Cynder was gone and her mother was murdered. Spyro thought back to his father and Tawna. Loosing your closet loved one, it was something no one should ever have to go through. It was an unfortunate tragedy of life, but it was unfair and it shouldn't happen to good people in this manor. Spyro wouldn't let it happen again if he could help it.

Spyro stepped forward towards a weeping Ignitus, preparing himself to do something reckless. What he was about to do, would cause him to break his promise he made to his adopted family. But Spyro saw what happened to Crash when he lost the love of his life, and how it tore at him, lingering in his mind even in the happier moments in his life after she passed. The pain he carried in his heart, it's something no one should ever have to endure. And Spyro wasn't going to allow that to happen to Ignitus now. He lost his wife in the original timestream after he rescues me from the thieves. He had to live with so much grief until he took me in as an adopted son, trained me, was there for me as I battled and eventually saved Cynder from Malefor. And eventually Ignitus sacrificed his own life to protect his daughter and me from the Belt of Fire when my past self-went to confront Malefor. He died believing in me. I… I owe this to him… even if it'll kill me. He will lose so much trying to help me. Well this time I'll be here for you.

"I'm sorry Ignitus." He turned around, his eyes bloodshot with tears, only to see Spyro place his front paw on his wife. "Cynder's been taken to the Well of Souls. Malefor intends to augment her body and mind there so that she'll become his perfect slave. But it takes Ripto a day to bring her there. If you hurry, you can stop Ripto before she's turned into a monster of Malefor's cause. And… don't tell your daughter about me. She never needs to know about me if we will never see each other."

"What are you…?"

It was a miserable process, feeling your own life slip out of yourself. Willingly sacrificing the very essence which keeps you alive and transferring it to someone else; consciously killing yourself so that someone else could live. Every instinct, every impulse of your own body compelling you to stop, trying to fight back as your will to live erodes away. This misery is what Sparx would go through if he ever had to, to save my own life because it was too valuable, because I was special, because I was prophesized to save the world. Well Spyro was tired of believing in that. His life wasn't any more important than any other Dragon, or Dragonfly, or Bandicoot from the future. And he wasn't the same Dragon from Crash's timeline that saved the world. He came back to this time with a duty, and he already failed within twenty minutes of arriving. But he could rectify that mistake by doing not the right or smart thing, but instead something noble.

Fighting back the tears and the thoughts of death closely impending, Spyro let everything go and gave it to Taika. Ignitus could only watch as a dimly glowing Spyro suddenly collapsed to the ground, as his wife began gasping for air.

"Taika?"

"[Gasps], I won't, let her go."

"It's okay, your safe. I have you."

"[Breathing rapidly] Ignitus, he, ambushed me; took our daughter. We have to find her!"

"And we will. I won't let any more harm come to your or our daughter. I promise."

Crying, Taika hugged her husband, believing that he wasn't lying to hear, seeking his comfort. "I thought I was… how… how did you bring me back?"

"I… I didn't." Ignitus let go of his wife and both he and Taika stared at Spyro, devoid of life after his sacrifice. After a few moments, Taika spoke.

"Why do I feel like I know him? Why do I remember what… Spyro remembers. That I feel the same love for our daughter in him that I feel? He's… the 'one,' isn't he? But how is that possible?"

Ignitus then knew what Spyro had done to revive his wife, bring her back from death. "Yes, he was the Dragon I was having visions of. One powerful enough to… one brave and courageous enough to save our daughter from… the Dark One. He shouldn't have…" Ignitus looked towards his wife sorrowly, "Spyro shouldn't have had to…"

"Given his life for me; sacrificed his future for me. I… wouldn't have taken it, if I could've refused. He deserved… wanted happiness here. The live he was meant to have. I feel it, in his memories… how much he wanted to be here. How responsible he felt for protecting everyone he could, and how much it pained him in already failing; feeling as if he was already failing in stopping what he saw was our horrible futures. But, this wasn't his fault. It was out of his control. I'm so sorry Spyro."

 _Spyro had awakened, Sparx could feel it. He entered Artisans just moments ago, and now his life force was dangerously low. He had given almost all of it to bring another Dragon from the brink of death._

Finally breaking out of his larvae, Sparx hastily tried to fly for the first time. It was an intense struggle, but he needed to hurry. His brother's life was at stake. He got up into the air for about two seconds before crashing harshly to the ground again. Only seconds old, relying only on instincts on how to fly, a newly born Sparx made his way from where in Artisans Spyro's egg was stolen towards Ignitus' house.

"He gave me my wife back, and for that I'll never be able to thank him enough. But, I wouldn't have asked him to do so. Somehow it just doesn't feel right, and I feel horrible in saying that Taika."

"Don't, I know what you mean. Spyro, he was going to be like a son to you. I know his father put a lot of trust in you. He was going to be like a son to both you and I..."

"I know…"

 _Sparx entered through a window and finally saw his brother for the first time. He was somehow eight years old already, that was a surprise. And almost of his life energy was in another Dragon. What is going on? Stunningly, Spyro was already accustomed to having his presence in his mind. It allowed Spyro to read him and understand what was going on._

Ignitus and Taika watched as Sparx landed on the side of Spyro's head.

 _˂Well that was incredibly noble of you.˃_

 _˂Sp… Spar…˃_

 _˂It's okay. Conserve your energy my brother. Wow… a LOT has happened to you. Brought to the future, raised by another family, but you came back to fix the wrongs caused in your absence. And somehow you lost a life on the first level.˃_

 _˂How…˃_

 _˂You're fortunate Taika wasn't completely gone when you saved her. Or it would have taken all of your soul to save her. And you're wrong Spyro, there is something special about you. And it's not that you're purple or destined to save the world, it's how far you're willing to go to do so. But fortunately this is why I'm here. You have a promise to make to your surrogate father, and I'll make sure you keep it. Also, say high to me when you get back to the future. I wonder if that Sparx will recognize his own life force in you.˃_

 _Sparx, so young and barely able to do so (with how little he had), began draining his own life force to save Spyro. It was as miserable as Spyro described, but at least Sparx was doing what he was always meant to do._

 _˂Save her Spyro. Live your life with Cynder. You deserve it. And promise me you won't do anything so reckless again, at least until you return to your other home and bring me back with you. Reckless is part of your nature. It's what makes you, you. Goodbye… brother.˃_

Sparx golden glow faded, and Spyro gasped for air to the surprise of Ignitus and Taika.

"[Breathing heavily] Sparx… I promise."

"Spyro…" Ignitus said worriedly. Spyro got up in pain, sore all over as he responded.

"Okay, I admit that was a little reckless. And it cost me my best friend…" Spyro carefully placed Sparx in his left front paw. "Well a version of him, but him nonetheless. He shouldn't have had to do this for me. Killing himself only moments after hatching. I'm really screwing things up here." Spyro placed Sparx's body on the rim of Cynder's nest and closed his eyes after staring at the lifeless shell for a moment. Ignitus then walked up to Spyro about to say something, but Spyro spoke before he could. "Cynder's life is still in grave danger. But all we have to do is beat Ripto to the Well of Souls, and she'll be safe of Malefor's influence. If Ripto makes it there before us though, then I will truly have come back to this time for nothing."

Taika thought of her response carefully before she asked Spyro her question. "You know so much about the future, because you came back from it. correct?"

"I told Ignitus that it was complicated, although you have a lot of my life force within you which seems to have helped you understand my predicament fully. So you must know all of what I know happens when I was never brought so far into the future. Of how I fall in love with your daughter in that timeline. And I also know what happens here in my absence. So I wanted to come here and save your daughter from all of the turmoil she experiences because I never rescue her. Even if that would mean I'd be eight years older than her and potentially never have a chance to see if I, myself, do indeed love her. But I don't think I'm ready. I already lost Sparx in saving your life. And I'm already ill prepared to face Malefor if it came to that today. I'm just not the same as I once was. I can't save everyone."

After an uncomfortable moment of silence, Taika responded. "Well… neither you nor your past self ever lacked the courage not to try." That drew a look from a solemn Spyro. "No matter which timeline, who you are hasn't changed. Thank you for saving my life, now go ahead and do the same for my daughter."

"I'm not sure I'll make it in time to save her."

"You like races, right? If you beat Ignitus to Ripto, maybe you can get the first shot in before my husband tears him to shreds."

"There'll actually be a reason that little bastard's called 'Rip'-to after I'm through with him."

* * *

Cynder was never really sure what to think of him. Her parents spoke the world of him, but he just seemed… distant, almost like he was tiptoeing his way around me. Which was definitely odd since he was my mentor. Conversations were always interesting and informative. Lessons were exiting and interestingly taught. But he never talked about himself or his past. Which was something Cynder defiantly wanted to know more about. It apparently was very confusing, but something urged her to find out more about him.

So one day while Spyro was out, Cynder arrived unwelcomed to his home and started snooping around. She once overheard a conversation between her father and Spyro mentioning something called the Atlas, which supposedly was a magical text that showed its reader exactly what he or she wanted to know, guiding them towards a better future. If that was true, then maybe a sneak peek at the magic book would answer all the questions she had about her mentor.

"Oh come on, where is it?"

Cynder stumbled about Spyro's home for a few more seconds until she entered his bedroom. In the corner, there was an old and worn out bag which apparently Spyro was wearing when he "arrived" in Artisans eight years ago.

"If it's not in there, then I give up."

She approached the satchel and carefully opened the bag without ripping it with her front claws. "Bingo." Amongst the clutter, including another journal titled "Time Twister Notes" and a strange metal contraption which Cynder had no idea what its purpose was for, laid the Atlas. She grabbed the fairly thin book and placed the backpack back where she found it in roughly the same position as before. With the book in her mouth, she exited the house through a window and flew to somewhere more secluded. After a few she landed in a clearing of the woods outside Artisans and gently placed the book on the floor.

"Ugh, these things are so hard to use."

Carefully placing one of her claws underneath the cover of the book, she delicately opened the front cover and scrolled past the first couple of pages, only to be met with blank sheets of white paper.

"Oh well this is helpful!"

Cynder laid back against a tree she was resting against and thought more about Spyro. Something about him captivated her attention. Was it love? I don't know. He was eight years older than me and that would defiantly be weird for either of us. But she was with him almost every day, learning about something or exploring the six Dragon Realms or the diverse cities and towns of Avalar with him. She looked up to him. It was like they understood each other. But Cynder wasn't sure if he… felt the same way. He treated me like an equal, never like a child or told me what to do without a reason for doing so. He respected me and my opinions. But at the same time kept an aura of mystery between them to which Cynder wanted to know why. What is he keeping from me? Cynder looked to the ground frustrated, wanting to know more about her mentor yet afraid to ask him about her questions directly. Opening her eyes, she noticed that words were beginning to appear on the open pages in front of her. "What the? Guess that's why it's a magic book."

"You're late Cynder. I can't even remember the last time you haven't showed up ten minutes early."

Cynder didn't respond to him, which was definitely odd. Usually every day before they began their training routines, they exchanged in humorous, light hearted banter. But today she didn't even look at him upon arriving. "Hey, what's up Cynder? Something bothering you?" Again she didn't respond to him, lost within her thoughts. After a few more seconds of uncomfortable silence, Cynder looked at Spyro without emotion and spoke.

"Do you love me?"

"Do I what, what kind of question is that?"

"It's as simple or complicated as you want it to be. Do you love me?"

"Well, of course I do. You mean a lot to me. Of course it's different that say how your parents love each other. You're a close friend of mine, whose company I enjoy… platonically."

"What about the Cynder of the past reality. Do you love her, too?"

And with that, Spyro knew why Cynder was acting the way she was acting. Spyro sighed loudly and made his way around Cynder before sitting down on the ground facing away from her. Cynder walked up next to him and sat down to his right. "How'd you find out, did you ask your father?"

"I kind of stole a book from your house."

"The Atlas."

"Spyro, I wanted to know more about you, but I was afraid to ask you. I know you enjoy our time together, but I also had the impression that you were hiding something, hiding me from… yourself. I had many ideas in my head as to why, some pleasant and some creepy, but what I read definitely took the cake. You were brought a hundred thousand years into the future, and that caused two alternate realities to exist, the one we're living in, you… corrected."

"Quite a story isn't it. Of how I became a Dragon out of his time."

"Do you miss them? The… bandi- coots?"

"It's been eight years since I came here from their time and universe. And yes Cynder, I do. The worst part is that I've had the ability to go back and visit them whenever I wanted."

"You do, well why haven't you?"

"Guess I'm scared to."

"You, who defeated the Sorceress and Malefor, in the most unique way possible."

"I used the truth against them both. Knowing your enemies greatest secrets and desires let me cheat. But I had a good reason to destroy their plans. You read about what Malefor was planing on doing to you."

" _Cynder's Fate_ was the title of the chapter. I almost thought the book was fiction at that point. But you really did save me from… _that_ , along with my mother, father, ALL life from them both. You're a hero Spyro."

"Yep. The _greatest_ Dragon ever. Except I don't feel like it."

"Well why not?"

"Guess I didn't get the happy ending."

"You mean me, don't you? It's why you 'act' the way you do around me. You do love me, but I'm eight years younger than you, which means you have to restrain yourself when near me."

Cynder could vicariously feel how embarrassed Spyro was because of the way she was talking to him. She felt guilty but decided this conversation was for the best, for they were being honest with each other for the first time.

"Well I guess that makes two of us. I… think I do love you, too. I know it's weird, taboo, not supposed to happen between us. But if we're being honest with each other than I'm not afraid to admit that I don't really care. Now I'm not suggesting we go… all the way right away." Spyro nervously laughed and got up while retreating from Cynder. "Hey, get back here. We're not done talking."

"You can't boss me around Cynder, you're not my mentor."

"You're only running because the topic is embarrassing, but unless you want to feel this way around me for the rest of your life, we need to address this. I may only be eight years old, but I'm not dumb."

"Fine. Yes Cynder, I love you and am… attracted to you. But that's only an impulse I can control. And going past that limit would pervert and violate whatever it is that I… feel for you… god why are we even having this conversation!" Spyro started walking away again but Cynder flew ahead of him and landed in front of him.

"I want to meet him."

"Meet who?"

"Your surrogate father. Crash apparently had such an impact on your life, I'd like to get to know him and his sister. It's only fair considering how well you've gotten to know my parents."

"Cynder… I don't know."

"The Spyro I know isn't afraid of anything, and apparently made a promise to his father that he would return one day. Come on, I know what that strange meatal device in your old backpack is for. Coco gave that to you as a means of returning to the future if you chose. Well take me with you."

"Cynder, we can't."

"Why not? What, you don't love or need him anymore? You're just happy being here in Artisans instead?"

"It's not like that! I… [sighs] can't go back, okay. I'm not the same Dragon that left to come here. And Crash, he felt so guilty for all the death he caused by even bringing me to the future in the first place. Me just suddenly appearing eight years older would be just a reminder of that."

"Or… you could tell him that everything worked out and that he doesn't need to feel guilty anymore. I know about Tawna as well, and how you thought her death affected Crash's relationship with you. Why you felt the need to sacrifice your own life to save my mothers'."

"God, what does that damn book read people's minds, too?"

"Don't be mad at the Atlas, it allowed me to finally understand you, how great of a Dragon you are."

"Yeah well everyone keeps saying that."

"They're not wrong."

"But they don't understand."

"Yet I do. You can't hide it any longer. Besides us not becoming… a thing, you miss your family. But only yourself is holding you back from seeing them again." Cynder could see that Spyro was tearing up just slightly.

"I guess I am scared."

"Of what, ice cream, Wumpa fruit, losing to your father in a race, hugging him once more?"

"That he doesn't need me anymore."

"Spyro he saved your life without hesitation. That may have caused some unintended ramifications, but that's besides the point. He isn't a Dragon yet you hold him in such high regard that it hurts you staying away from him for so long."

"You're… you're right Cynder." Spyro wiped a tear from his face. "I should go see my father."

"See, told you I'm not dumb. But you know what is dumb, that you never noticed this remarkable fact until now. Both Crash and your real parents named you Spyro. That's how you know it was Fate you and Crash were supposed each other."

"Hugh… I NEVER realized that!"

"You can tell Crash all about it when we go visit him."

Cynder leaned to the side and rested herself on her mentor. Spyro wrapped his wing around her and they both stared at the sunset.


	23. Abandonment

**Chapter 23: Abandonment**

"Well you've broken into my home once before, so I guess you already know your way around. Are you sure your parents are alright with this Cynder?"

"I'm essentially visiting relatives. What's wrong with that?"

"You haven't told them yet, haven't you?"

"Look Spyro, you're my mentor right? You saved my life eight years ago, right? You saved the entire world in the meantime. You are the most trustworthy Dragon there is, why wouldn't my parents mind?"

It sounded so weird, hearing Cynder talk like this… about her parents. Knowing that in another reality (where maybe he began to have feelings for her), Cynder lost both of her parents and committed some very horrible things against her will. And now she was just a normal eight year old Dragon. The Cynder he read about, the one he cried for while reading the Dragon Atlas when he was still in an alternate future, it was not the Cynder standing before him today. This young Dragoness was innocent, never had to deal with the horrors that would be her fate if Spyro hadn't intervened with knowledge from both the Atlas and the Time Twister. She was eight years old and eight years younger than he was. Spyro was aware this would be a consequence of arriving in this timeline eight years aged from the point both his and Cynder's eggs were stolen; that he would be forfeiting a chance at having a relationship with the Dragon he in another timeline fell in love with. But now he was living with that decision and trying to cope with it... the decision to save her from a grim fate, only to now have one of his own. No… his fate wasn't grim. It was just, not what he expected… or wanted. Spyro came back, saved Ignitus, Cynder, Taika, Elora, Hunter, Sheila, everyone from death and despair. Everything was the way it should be, no threats to the world, Dragonkind, Avalar, everything was safe. And yet he was''t happy.

"Ugh… Spyro, you okay?" Cynder's comment broke Spyro out of his train of thought.

"Yeah."

"Are you nervous? You've been putting this off for a while now; I guess the feeling's only natural." The way Cynder talks to me, honestly without restraint, even with our age difference. It makes it hard to remember that she is still just a child. It makes it hard to hold back how I feel for her, even though it's for the best. "No Cynder, I'm not nervous. Okay, maybe I am. It's just… when I left Crash and his sister, I was your age. And now I can show up literally moments after I departed from their time aged eight years. I… shouldn't have waited so long to see them."

"You're going now. That's what important. Plus, there's still a surviving Sparx waiting for you there, right?" Sparx… His presence was something I forgot I sorely missed. And sacrificing his life only moments after being born was not easy for me to cope with, especially since it was my recklessness with my own life that caused him to give up his for me in the first place. What I did was to save Taika's life, but… it wasn't fair to him to have to make that decision for me. Utilitarianly, Sparx sacrifice could be mitigated if the other Sparx waiting for me with Crash returned with me to this time, since now he could safely. But, it still would never clear Spyro of the guilt in his consciousness, like how he loves a child and how he waited too long to visit his parents. But hopefully I can learn to cope with these things at least. Spyro smiled and looked at Cynder.

"Very true. Thank you Cynder, for convincing me to go through with this. I guess I really was scared to do so."

"You stared down the Sorceress and the Dark One without flinching, because the world needed to be saved from their tyranny. But you stopped yourself from seeing your family for so long because you were scared? Hmm… I don't buy it. I think you stopped yourself from seeing Crash again because you agree with him that he is right. You convinced yourself that you were never meant to know each other. But this opinion, for both of you, was formed out of grief and not truth. Wasn't it?"

"You know, sometimes I wonder if I really am your mentor. Lately it seems as if the reverse is true."

"Let's just say I've learned a lot from you master, some of which is about you. And I may have a crush on you." Spyro looked away embarrassed. "Look, we will address… 'this' eventually Spyro. But in the meantime please stop acting so tense around me. You know that I now know about the Cynder of the past - all that happened to her - how you fell in love with her. But honestly I prefer things this way even if I'm eight years younger than you now. Having a family, never having to deal with the grief of those I harmed, losing my father. I want you to know that, and know just how thankful I am for what you've done for me."

"I… you're welcome Cynder."

"See, you're already more relaxed. The Time Twister's return pad is in the corner over there, isn't it?"

"Guess I wasn't wrong in you knowing your way around." Spyro walked over toward the worn out backpack Coco had given to him right before he left her time and carefully opened it (it was difficult for him to grip and pull the zipper, but he managed). He removed the return pad and placed it on the floor.

"So what, that little metal cylinder will bring us to the future? Sounds like quite the magical achievement."

"Scientific achievement. I learned a lot from Coco before I came here, including just how exactly this little cylinder works. Crash's sister is quite the genius; I remember the time we spent together, especially when she and I built my father's birthday gift together."

"The… hoverboard thing, right? With the… 'gravity lens'?"

"Remind me to find the author of the Atlas and roast him for privacy invasion."

"But then how would I or anyone else read this story?"

Spyro pressed the button on the center of the return pad, and it began to fold outwards and form a large metal circle on the ground with a small antenna rising upwards from the center. Even after eight years this thing still works.

"If I remember correctly, the specific universe and destination geographically is already pre-set into the device; all I need to do is configure when we show up on N Sanity Island. Coco mentioned it was possible to arrive at any point after I departed from her universe without the consequence of causing a new reality to exist, or I could show up with the offset amount of time I've spent here, or really any duration of time."

"Well I guess we wouldn't want to show up at any point after Coco or Crash died."

"That's kind of grim, don't you think?"

"What, I'm being realistic. They're both mutants, who knows how long they can live for. And they were already over a decade old when you departed from their time. So, let's give it a year."

"Man, how much did the Atlas tell you about Crash and Coco?"

"Enough to know why they've had such an impact they had on you."

"Fair enough. A year offset it is."

Spyro began saying the vocal commands needed to set the offset time since his departure from Crash's time and double checked that he had done so correctly. He was really going to see him again. Hopefully Spyro hadn't totally forgotten Sign Language. Once all the configurations and preparations were complete, Spyro ushered the command to open a warp bubble to N Sanity Island a hundred thousand years in an alternate universe. The machine began to hum, but then sparks began to fly out from the antenna at the center before shutting down completely.

"Ugh…," Cynder mumbled, "maybe we're traveling towards the future one second at a time."

"No, that definitely wasn't supposed to happen." Spyro closely inspected the return pad, when he noticed a piece of paper slid in-between two of the metal shutters that comprised the metal base of the return pad. When he opened up the note, he immediately recognized Crash's hand writing.

* * *

The Time Twister began cooling down after it sent Spyro on a long and perilous journey. Crash allowed himself to stop smiling, for his son was forever gone. A Dragon that filled such a void in his life that he never knew was plaguing him until he watched him hatch in his home eight years ago. A Dragon that gave him so much joy and happiness over the past eight years… at the expense of hundreds of millions of lives in the time Crash had stolen him from. And now Spyro had returned back to his real home and would prevent his mistake from harming so many. And that was where Spyro belonged. Crash couldn't expect, couldn't let him stay here with him and his sister, it was wrong to do so. His kind… they needed him. He was a real hero, with countless many depending on him to protect them from terrible beings. I just hope he can forgive me, for leaving him there. For not allowing him to return, for sabotaging the return pad. It… it was the right thing to do. Crash then heard an echo in his mind; it was Sparx.

˂S-ro, h- rea-y -nt goi- to re-urn. Th-, was a one -ay tr-p.˃

˂I'm sorry Sparx, but yeah, it was.˃

˂I can s-nse it in you. J-st how mu- you l-e him. You were s- torn by t-is decision you made, but ultimately you made it for him. In a way, it was noble of you. I believe, if you had the opportunity, you'd sacrifice your own life to save his, like I would. And to truly do so is a rare form of love. A special trait only between those who are truly close; Spyro was lucky to know you.˃

˂Thank you Sparx… Spyro is lucky to have someone like you by his side as well.˃

Sparx remained hovering in the air. He no longer had a purpose, a Dragon to protect and serve. He waited as an unborn larva for 101,000 years to see him, and he was only able to do so for about a week. Spyro was warned of what happened in his absence, and he returned to his time to correct it, and hopefully was reunited with the Sparx of that timeline, who'd be there to guide him and protect him.

˂You also made a noble sacrifice in staying here in the present, Sparx.˃

˂I know Aku-Aku. The decision was easy to make, for it was the only thing to do which would allow Spyro to return when it mattered most. It's just living with the decision that's hard. I'll never see him again.˃

˂The greatest illusion of life is that death is permanent. Don't worry, you'll be reunited with your spiritual brother, if not in this life than in the next.˃

˂Thanks Aku-Aku. May the Fates be kind.˃

˂It's what friends are for. May the Fates be kind as well.˃

N-Gin remained where he was, patiently and silently letting both Crash and Coco grieve the disappearance of their mutual friend. Coco meanwhile wiped a tear from her eye, sad that she wouldn't see Spyro for a while, or maybe even forever if he failed in his mission or decided not to return here at all. But Coco doubted that either case would be true. Spyro would come back to visit. Whether it was a few seconds from now or maybe years from now, she would be here waiting for him along with her brother. Memories of hearing Spyro talk for the first time, watching him and Crash fly together with the hoverboard they made for her brother; Spyro really did fill a void in her family she didn't even know was their until Crash brought him here from the past. And for that, Coco was grateful.

She turned around and looked at her brother, who was staring at the ground with a saddened look on his face, his long ears also pointing down.

"Don't worry brother, Spyro will come back. I know he will." Crash looked up at his sister, tearing just a little with a depressed look on his face. He replied in Sign Language.

[No, no he won't Coco.]

"Don't think like that Crash. Of course he will. You're his father, and no matter what happens, that will always be true."

Crash waited for a few seconds before he replied. [You remember when you first found out I had brought Spyro here eight years ago. When you yelled at me and told me it was a 'monumentally dumb decision'?]

Coco hesitated with her response, for it was not what she expected. "Yes I remember. And to my credit I'll stick by with what I said. Bringing an unborn Dragon into our home from a hundred thousand years in the past was an irrational decision. But you know what, so was rescuing me from Cortex's control, you defecting from Cortex's control, and so was saving Tawna from being killed. You know why? Because it's all about perspective. Something's doing what's smart and doing what's right are not the same thing, but basing your decisions off love is always something I've admired about you Crash. You risked your life in saving me, in saving Tawna, and in saving Spyro. I mean, I was going to kill you because that was what Cortex instructed me to do. But you just sat there and didn't fight back. You couldn't hurt your own family, and would die before doing so. I learned from you what it meant to love because of you, and because of you I broke free from Cortex's control... and rescued you from him after you were captured." Coco turned towards N-Gin, who may have been uncomfortable hearing her talk so negatively about the man he considered his father. "I just wish I could have figured out what was happening to him before he died. If I would have known that he was utterly under the control of Uka-Uka, and dying from Anton's Key, I would have done something to save him, like you did with me Crash."

Crash absorbed what his sister had said, but his demeanor did not change. [I never knew you were my biological sister until you told me... I never had the courage to face Cortex again once I escaped from his lair with Tawna. I was… afraid of what he would do to us if he ever found Tawna or me. But in her dying wish she begged me… to save him. She knew he was under the mental domination of Uka-Uka, and asked me to free him from his enslavement. She was the one who saw past his evil exterior. Even though he was going to euthanize her for the defect in her creation, she still was thankful that he gave her and me life. And after saving you, stopping Uka-Uka's plans… I killed him. Maybe inadvertently, maybe without hostile intent, but I failed to save him from the evil which consumed him because I was angry.] "Eee- yeme, s- arwee, N Gin," crash said emotionally before he resumed communicating with Sign Language. [But I was angry for what he did to the person I loved. Through his brilliance and his imperfectness, he gave Tawna a short, painful, and brief life… a life I didn't have enough time to share with. And in my anger I watched him fall and be caught in the implosion of his Time Twister. I KNEW what was wrong with him and didn't try to help. But afterwards I knew that I had done something terrible and failed to keep the promise I made to Tawna. And I almost couldn't live with it. I felt like I didn't deserve her love or even yours Coco. I never just mourned Tawna's death… I felt guilty, responsible for tarnishing it… the family I never had a chance to have."

Coco never met Tawna, she died before she could have. But Coco always thought she knew why Tawna had such a special place in her brother's heart. But now she heard the truth for the first time, something Crash had kept buried within himself for almost ten years. Her brother finally opened up and revealed the reasoning into his troubled heart.

"Even so," N-Gin finally spoke up, "you were never responsible for what Uka-Uka did to Cortex. He only preyed upon… my father because he was the only man capable for carrying out his maleficent plans of global destruction. Before he fully succumbed to that evil spirit's control, he saved my life and gave each of you lives as well. We are his legacy, Crash. You honored that even in your defiance against him, by stopping Uka-Uka from ruining the world and using my father as a means to do so. I'm sure Cortex would rather have died than been responsible for the death of everything."

Even with N-Gin's words of reassurance, Crash's demeanor still didn't change, which began to worry Coco. Something was seriously troubling her brother. Before she could speak, Crash continued.

[I thought I could never be happy in life without Tawna. But you proved that wrong Coco. And then Spyro came into my life, and he truly did fill a void within me, acting as the son I never could have. He meant… the world to me. Him and you Coco, and now even you N-Gin, mean the world to me. But I learned what having Spyro in my life coast others from his time. I saw with the Time Twister all the horror that was caused because Spyro disappeared, and whether it was unintentional or unforeseeable, it was my fault. But this time around, I would stop at nothing to prevent my actions from harming others… Spyro isn't coming back, I made sure of it. I sabotaged his return pad, and left him a note explaining why.]

Coco gasped upon seeing what Crash told her. She would never see Spyro again. She felt so sad, but then the sadness dissipated and was replaced by a sudden calmness. She wasn't angry, she was just… disappointed. Twenty seconds of silence passed, and Crash, still very depressed, turned around and began to make his way out of the remains of Cortex's Castle. Until his sister's voice stopped him.

"I, I never thought you, of all people, could do something so selfish" she said calmly but loudly. She wasn't angry with her brother, but needed him to hear what she thought of his actions. "To be capable of abandoning the one thing in your life you loved as equally as me or Tawna." It was like he was punched in the gut, hearing his sister talk to him like this. He was blindsided by the attack, and a tear slipped from his eye once more.

[Coco, it was the right thing to do. Spyro never belonged here; he shouldn't have ever come here.]

"Did you ever ask him?" Coco replayed sternly, not raising her voice but maintain her cold glance at her brother, with nothing but disdain in her voice. "Did you ever listen to him when he thanked you for being in his life and forgiving you for bringing him here? He never had a choice in the mater; he was brought here against his will and was raised by you, but he loved you anyway. And now he's traveled back to his homeland, selflessly, thinking that, believing that someday he can come back and see his father once more, knowing that all is right in his timeline and ours. Crash, Spyro never cared that you were responsible for removing him from his time. For causing all the horrible things to happen because he disappeared, and if he did he instantly forgave you. Because both he and I always knew it was never your fault. But no, instead he's now going to open that return pad and be devastated that the one person he loved most in his life abandoned him because of his own… imagined slights."

Crash staggered, and he momentarily couldn't breathe. His sister had never spoken this harshly of him before. She wasn't angry or yelling at him, but he could feel just how disappointed she was of him. And it was breaking his heart. Unlike before, Crash was now failing to hold his emotions in check.

[Coco… it was the right thing to do. Don't you understand? That it was never my right to remove him from his home, from where he belongs and cause so many terrible things to happen?]

"I understand perfectly, brother. I understand that even though you believed and willingly let Spyro go back to his time and correct all the damage you feel you're responsible for; you were also ready to desert him in order to alleviate your conscience of its fictional guilt. What I can't understand or believe Crash is that you would even dare to mention Tawna as a means to justify this. You must have learned the wrong lesson from her death. She never loved you for what you did or would have hated you for what you failed to do. Tawna, like Spyro and I, simply love you for who you are; that you would do anything to protect your family. At least I thought that until today, until I found out that you'd be willing to forsake someone both you and I considered as part of this family. I hope you're happy, I hope you find peace with this decision, no longer feel guilty knowing Spyro. I'll always love you for being my brother, for what you've done for me and all we've been through together. But this… I don't know If I can ever forgive you for this. You took the choice from Spyro, you never even allowed him the option to see you again. And you sat there, just minutes ago, hugging him, and telling him you loved him knowing full well what you were planning on doing to him. I'd say I'm ashamed of you, but I know that you were truly only doing what you thought was right. Well I felt the need to explain to you just how wrong you were. I'll see you at the house."

And with that, Coco walked past Crash and made her way towards their home on the first island. Sparx remained where he was, vicariously feeling the pain inside Crash yet not sure of what to do or whether Coco was right or not. N-Gin remained for a little while longer before also followed Coco out of Cortex's Castle. Crash's breathing starting to intensify as he felt pain and grief begin to overwhelm him. Coco, she was right. What did I do? How could I… how could I lie right to Spyro's face, and promise that he'd wait for his arrival? He collapsed to his knee's now crying uncontrollably. "I'm so sorry!" Crash said aloud, raspy, incomprehensible, and high pitched. Sparx landed in front of him, his presence only a reminder of what Crash had done to his son, whom he would never see again.

* * *

Spyro stared at the note in his hand, a single tear formed in his right eye, before he let the note fall out of his paw. He immediately set it ablaze in a wrath and then grabbed the return pad from the floor and flung it at the wall, where it ricocheted onto the floor, only minorly damaged.

Cynder could only watch as Spyro stood before her in a rage, deeply hurt and upset over what he just read. She had never seen Spyro like this, and it hurt just to look at him. But she was there for him. She convinced him to do this, and she would be here for him if he needs me.

"The note... you're father wrote it, didn't he. It explains why the return pad isn't working."

"What, did the damn Atlas tell you about the note, too?! How could he do this to me! How could he lie to me…? I thought he loved me!"

"He does Spyro."

"How the fuck do you know?! How is him leaving me stranded here love?! How is him telling me that 'the decision was hard but the right thing to do' equate to him giving a damn about me?"

"Because he rescued you from danger while you were still in an egg. Because he watched you hatch and gave you a name. Because every time he hugged you he wasn't faking what he felt."

Spyro was done yelling, the anger subsided and was replaced by overbearing sadness. "Yeah, well all that doesn't make up for the fact that he never wants to see me again."

"I may not know him, and all I do know is what I read from a book, but you know him. Honestly tell me that he doesn't ever want to see you again."

"I… I just… I don't understand why he would abandon me here. I told him I was glad he raised me, that I was glad I had the opportunity to know him, and he believed me, I know he did. So why, why did he do this to me?"

"Well, from what I understand, he did so because he thought it was what's best for you… You do love it here, right? Being with other Dragons? Being with me?"

"[Sighs], this is where I belong, where I was always meant to be, I can feel it. But it doesn't mean I can forget Crash and Coco as well. They're a part of me, and I yearn to be with them again. But now I never will."

"Would you forgive Crash if you could see him again?"

"It's not possible, so why would I care?"

"Because Spyro, I believe you can do anything."

"Except for the impossible."

"Time travel evidently isn't impossible. You just need to redo the 'science' that brought you here. You said Coco taught you, right?"

"Yeah, she taught me a lot of things. But I'm nowhere near capable of building a time machine on my own. And I didn't even work on rebuilding the Time Twister with Coco and N-Gin. I instead spent my final days on N-Sanity Island with Crash, for whatever good that did."

"But Coco did teach you about Time manipulation. I believe there's a book inside that backpack title 'Time Twister Notes' if I recall. Plus you have an almost functioning return pad. This is your family Spyro; you love them more than anything else. Even if it takes years, decades to finish, wouldn't it be worth it? To find out if Crash truly loved you, to see him and Coco one more time?"

"I don't know Cynder. I don't think I can do it."

"I'll be here, to help in any way possible. You saved my parents lives. If I can repay you, in any small way, shape, or form by helping you see yours once more, I'll do it. Even if it takes years, it would be the least I can do to show my gratitude, and my love."


	24. A Family Across Timelines

**Chapter 24: A Family Across Timelines**

"We're close, but we still haven't solved the quantum tunneling problem. How are we on that, Professor?"

"According to my calculations, and that 'Coco' feller's notes came in real handy by the way, the tunneling issue will be resolved once we are able to bypass the coulomb barrier within the Power Gems. The energy contained by the Crystals is trapped within this barrier, and since we can't heat the gems to fifteen megakelvin, the only other way to extract the energy is to irradiate the crystals with a strong source of ionizing radiation. Once we tap into that pool of energy, the quantum tunneling issue will be resolved because the gravity lens can successfully contain the wormhole being formed."

"We have the iridium and a hadron accelerator to produce the radiation. Cynder and I spent a year building it. The gravity lens is also built and in place. All we need is the Power Gems to cooperate and after all this time we'll finally be finished. I… I can't thank you enough for doing this, Professor. You've helped me more than you know."

"Well you've helped the world more than you take credit for, Spyro. So helping you build this scientific wonder is the least I can do to repay you on behalf of the world. When you came to me five years ago wanting to build this, I thought you were crazy but my curiosity took over. And now that we're so close, I've got to say that this is by far the greatest invention… ever. I can't imagine all that can be done with a device like this… a Time Twister."

"Hopefully, it'll take me somewhere special Professor."

"And by that," Elora chimed in from behind, "you mean it'll take you to someone special."

Spyro turned around, glad to see his and the Professor's good friend Elora. The Professor walked up and greeted her, before walking out of the laboratory to retrieve something. Spyro made it one of his goals when returning to this timeline to forge a similar relationship he had with Elora as his counterpart from Crash's timeline a hundred thousand years ago did. It wasn't to say that he loved her or wanted to, but evidently she had a sizable impact on the previous Spyro's life, so he wanted to find out why. Getting to know her now, he understood why Elora was so special in both this timeline and the unaltered one. Once the Professor left, Spyro spoke. "I certainly do have a special friend waiting for me there. And he deserves to come home."

"Sparx" Elora replied. "It'll be nice to see a Dragonfly for the first time. From what you told me about him, I'm sure he can't wait to see you again. But I had someone else in mind, someone else that may just miss you as well." Spyro turned around and pretended to be looking at something important on the desk in front of him. Elora could tell he instantly became agitated. "You're still mad at him, aren't you?"

"What gives you that inclination?" Spyro responded quickly and with concealed emotion as he continued to fidget with the notes on the table in front of him, still pretending to be preoccupied with the Time Twister.

"You know, way back when, when you told me all about how you were raised by a stranger from way in the future, I thought it was such an inspiring tale. One of a stranger who rescued you from danger for no other motivation than because it was the right thing to do, and then raised you like a son of his own when he couldn't return you home. And as you told me that story, I heard in your voice just how much you genuinely loved him as well. So I find it hard to believe you truly hate him now."

Spyro stopped what he was doing and turned around. Even as an adult, twenty one year old, Elora could tell he was tearing up just barely. She could also see the anger, confusion, and pain displayed in his face. She knew he was undecided, even as he spoke his response.

"He abandoned me, Elora. If he really loved me, he wouldn't have done that."

Elora was silent for a few seconds before she responded. "Did I ever tell you about my father, Spyro?"

"Briefly. I believe you said he volunteered to join the Avalar Resistance: a militia of ordinary citizens assembled to rebel against Ripto and his forces."

"My mother… died when I was very young, when my village was attacked by the forces of Ripto. After I lost her, all I had was my father. He told me, the day before he left to enlist when I was six years old, that he was leaving to protect me and all our neighbors in our community. I begged him not to go, crying the day he left. He was the only family I had. So when I found out through a letter eight months later that he died in service… I was mad at him. I never asked him to go, I didn't want him to go and he went anyway. He didn't need to sacrifice his life for the service of others, when I need him more than anyone else. And I felt that way, even when the Professor tried to convince me otherwise. Only several years later when I met a young cheetah who had lied about his age to enlist did I change my mind. He said he met my father while he was enlisted, and looked up to him like the father he lost earlier in his life. He told me that my father used to talk about me a lot, how I was the motivation that kept him going, kept his spirits high amidst the chaos of war and losing his wife. It was only when I truly understood what a brave and courageous decision he made in leaving me that I felt ashamed in what I had thought of him and forgave him."

"It's not the same Elora" Spyro said a little emotionally. "Crash lied to me. He looked at me square in the eyes before I left and he said he'd wait for me when I returned. And instead he left me a note trying to explain why he pushed me out of his life forever."

"My father lied to me as well, Spyro, the day he left. He promised me, as he knelt in front of me smiling, that he would return once the war was over. It was a reason I was so upset with him when he died. But he only lied to me to protect me from the truth. To reassure me that he, even in putting his own life in danger, was doing so to keep mine safe."

"Your father lied to you about returning because he loved you and wanted to protect you. Crash lied to me and abandoned me because he felt guilty. Apples and oranges, Elora."

"Crash lied to you because he knew he had stolen you from your rightful home. He knew that in a past life you lived the life you were supposed to, married, and started a family of your own. He lied to you… I believe, because he was afraid that you would choose to live with him instead of staying here. Maybe he is wrong, maybe it was wrong of him to strand you here, but he only did so because he was doing what he thought was best for you. Maybe my father's life didn't make a significant difference in the war to protect Avalar, but he was willing to give it up to secure my future. That is a powerful form of love, Spyro, only shared between families; between you and Sparx, and I believe between you and Crash. So when you do finally reunite with him Spyro, promise me you'll at least talk to him. He's the only father you have; at least you can see him again."

"I… why are you telling me all this Elora? What I do when I travel back to the future isn't really your business."

"Maybe it isn't, but I care about you, Spyro. We're friends, so when I see you so anxious about returning to the future, and learning why from Cynder, I felt obligated to help you. You're an amazing Dragon, Spyro. And Crash may be a reason for that. I know you can find it within your heart to forgive him. And if you do, you'll see just how much of a euphoric relief that feeling can be.

"Cynder… she talked to you about me?"

"She told me she was the one to convince you to go see your family in the future; that you were nervous beforehand and waited eight years before finally deciding to see them. And I could tell from her voice as she was talking about you just how much she loves you. She is, like I am, worried about you, that's all. We want you to be happy, and that means you finding closure with your surrogate father."

"I don't know Elora. I miss him badly, but at the same time I'm furious with him. I've had a great thirteen years of life here after departing from Crash's time, I achieved all that I wanted to, made things right here and saved countless lives. I became the hero I was destined to be. But even with all these accomplishments I still can't stop thinking about sitting on N Sanity Island and watching the sun set over the horizon with my father. I love him so much yet can't understand how he could abandon me, when I absolutely know he feels the same way about me."

"Well then that is the real reason you are returning to see him: to understand him. And after that, see if you still love him as much as you believe he loves you."

* * *

Alone on a warm, calm, and sunny day, Crash stood in front of the love of his life's grave, silently in remorse as he confessed his feelings and transgressions. Above him, Sparx floated, where he had remained ever since his purpose, Spyro, had returned to their time without him to be the hero everyone there needed. Quietly, he soaked in and overheard Crash's thoughts.

˂It's really been twelve years Tawna, since I last saw your face, felt your hair, heard your voice. I'll never forget you. I'll never forget your face, the feel of your hair, or the sound of your voice. I'll never forget what you meant to me, how you inspired me, how we set each other free. I… I know if you were still around, however, you'd be disappointed in me. Not for failing to save Cortex, but because of what I did to Spyro. I know you would have loved him, would have been fascinated by him. Not a mutant or a creation like us, but instead so much more. I don't think anyone can ever know just how magnificent dragons are until they meet one. And I had that privilege. To raise him, to hold Spyro in my arms when he was an infant, hearing him speak, watching him fly, and being there as he grew. That feeling, that blissful of being a parent, I'd giveanything to share that feeling with you Tawna.˃

˂Instead I threw it away, forsaked my own son because I felt so guilty for all the harm having him in my life caused to those in Spyro's time. I let him travel back to correct all that occurred because I stole him from his true home, but then I lied to him and gave him false hope that he could return and see me once more. I was blinded by grief. I thought he didn't need me anymore, that it would have been so terrible of me to allow him to stay here since he belonged in the past, and that it was never my right to bring him here in the first place. But I had never been so wrong in my life; I had never done something so selfish until I deserted my son in the past. I have… nightmares, not of Spyro failing to save everyone he would have cared about had I not stole him from his home, but of him succeeding and then being devastated when he attempts to return home. I fear what he thinks of me, not because of how harshly he now hates me, but of how truthful those thoughts are, and of him having those thoughts forever. I… almost begged Coco to let me use the Time Twister so I could go to him, apologize, and beg for his forgiveness. But the truth is I don't deserve it, and he'd never want to see me again after what I did to him…˃

˂I miss Coco, too. Our family has never been the same after I abandoned Spyro. She's so disappointed in me and I'm too scared to talk to her about it. She's moved on, able to accept that she'll never see Spyro again because of me. So she has moved on from N Sanity Island and has moved on from me. It's been three months since she last left, the longest she's been gone for in her year of touring of the world. I believe she frequently visits N-Gin in Australia, checking up on his progress in building and maintaining orphanages where he was born and throughout the world. I've been so lonely ever since she left, but it's my own fault since I refused to go with her this time… and I deserve it: this anguish.˃

* * *

"This is it Spyro, the machine has been thoroughly tested for safety and accuracy for weeks now. The Professor is confident it works 100% and has preconfigured the coordinates left in Coco's return pad into the Time Twister. Whenever you want, the Time Twister can send you and me to N Sanity Island. I'll finally meet this strange orange creature I've read so much about."

Spyro stared at the completed Time Twister, with the Professor making some last minute adjustments to the calibration mechanisms of the machine, as Elora helped him out to the best of her ability. Her and the Professor both bounding like they did when she was first orphaned and left into his care. After thirteen years aged, Spyro was going to see his father again, only around a year (precisely 50 weeks) after he departed as an eight year old. He was going to be taller than him now by about a foot. All of Spyro's memories of himself with Crash are of him being smaller and younger than his father, looking up at him and looking up to him, believing he was the best father in the world. But know he was going to face him as an adult, looking down at him after what he had done to him, and decide if he could forgive him, if he still really loved him. "In a way Cynder, I'm going to meet Crash for the first time, too."

Spyro and the Professor conversed for a few moments, assuring that everything was set for his return to N Sanity Island. Spyro took a return pad from the Professor which was set to return them here with any amount of offset time Spyro and Cynder desired, and placed it in the same backpack Coco had giving to him before he came to the past. Spyro and Cynder said their goodbyes, saying that they'd be back soon, and the Professor activated the Time Twister. Both he and Cynder were sucked into a spherical bubble, and they disappeared from sight and reappeared in a parallel timeline in front of Crash and Coco's small home on Wumpa Island.

"So this is a 'tropical island'?" Cynder said as she took in her surroundings. "The weather is certainly nice, as is the sunshine, calm breeze, the sound of the crashing waves, and perfect humidity. I can see why you like it here."

Spyro was frozen for a moment. Everything was just as he remembered it, even after thirteen years relative to him. He approached the front door with Cynder trailing behind, and knocked. No one answered, and the door creeped open once he knocked on it. Spyro entered through the circular wooden door and took in the familiar sights of his former home, noticing how empty it seemed compared to how vibrant and cozy it felt when he and his parents lived here. Spyro walked around some more, but knew the place was empty.

"This must be Crash and Coco." Cynder said as she gazed at two portraits resting above an unlit fireplace.

"Those are pictures of Crash and Tawna. Coco was a good artist but she never drew self-portraits." Spyro also looked at the two paintings, as well as newer ones Coco did of Spyro when he was a year old and seven years old. They brought up nostalgic memories, which conflicted in his mind with just how empty and barren his home seemed without Crash or Coco present. "Where are they? They have to be here, this is their home."

"Maybe there on vacation?"

"I don't know. This island was pretty special to them."

"So we can travel through time but not locate the two bandicoots and the Dragonfly we wanted to see. What a bummer."

Being reminded of Sparx brought up the sensation Spyro had when Sparx first began to make his imprint within his mind. The connection was gentle and unobtrusive. It was like having an imaginary friend in your mind that actually floated around. Remembering the sensation allowed him to briefly sense something a few dozen yards towards the woods.

"I may have a method just yet. Come on Cynder." Spyro briskly made his way outside Crash's home and began walking west along the beach. Cynder followed, and after they walked for just under half a minute, Spyro stopped dead in his tracks to the surprise of Cynder. She wondered why she stopped until she noticed the orange creature staring at a rectangular rock formation on the ground, with a glowing object floating to his right. Cynder was about to speak when Spyro shushed her. Spyro could feel it, what Crash was doing. He could hear what Sparx was feeling inside Crash's mind, and through that link Spyro was able understand all of what Crash was thinking. And it started to bring him to tears.

˂… this Anguish… I wish I could see him one more time Tawna. I miss him as much as I miss you. And knowing that it's my fault I'll never see him again makes the pain unbearable. If I could ever see him again, I'd tell him how sorry I am, I'd tell him how much I love him, that what I did to him was the worst thing I've ever done, and that having him in my life was one the best thing that ever happened to me, as were you and Coco's. But now all three of you are gone in different ways….. I would just tell him how much I love him…˃

˂Why don't you tell him yourself?˃ Crash and Sparx turned around surprised at the echo in each's mind, stunned and shocked to see Spyro and Cynder standing behind them. Sparx rushed over from Crash's side and buzzed around Spyro.

˂It's really you! I… I see what happened to the Sparx from you're time. I guess I do recognize myself inside you.˃

˂I missed you, too, buddy.˃

Crash was flabbergasted. Almost hyperventilating and frozen in place, he couldn't believe what he was seeing, and it terrified him. Spyro stopped looking at Sparx, his smile disappearing once he looked at Crash. He then started walking towards Crash, each step he drew closer the more frightened Crash became. Paralyzed with anxiety, Crash remained still without knowing what to do as Spyro came within six feet of him, aged considerably since the last time he saw him. He was about a foot taller and now more imposing than the eight year old which Crash remembered so fondly. Spyro stopped and stared down at him, his face blurry as tears began to pool in Crash's eyes.

"Sp- e i- ro, Eheym…" Before Crash could finish his sentence, Spyro pounced on him. For just a moment Crash panicked, but then the moment subsided and he realized he was being hugged, Spyro wrapping his large forearms around him.

"I… I forgive you… dad. But I made a promise to you and your sister, and even if it took thirteen years, I intended to keep it."

Cynder even from a distance could tell Spyro was crying and his voice reflected that. She had seen him tear up before but had never witnessed him this sad before. All because of this weird orange creature who looked like most of the other creatures from Avalar. But apparently Spyro loved this bandicoot, because he raised him as a son he could never have. And in that moment she understood why the greatest Dragon needed to see his father once again. Crash had shaped his live, and that meant the world to Spyro. In her understanding, she couldn't help but smile. The Dragon she loved had finally found closure, and in doing so would now be truly happy. She was also glad to be a part of it as well.

"E-ii, shu ooldn't, hu- ave… eheym sa- arwy." Crash said with a raspy voice worse than Spyro's. Spyro let go of his father and wiped the tears from his eyes before continuing.

"I, was mad at you Crash, when I first found out you sabotaged the return pad. But, some very special people, whom I had told about you, convinced me I was being too harsh on you. I now know they were right. I can't fault you for doing what you thought was right, even though you were consumed by grief when you made the decision."

[I was wrong Spyro. You are one of the best things to ever happen in my life, and I pushed you away. I can't ever forgive myself for doing that.]

"But I can forgive you. And I can tell you that you are also one of the greatest things to ever happen in my life. I love you dad."

Crash looked up at his son who was now taller and older than he was, smiling and crying, opposite emotions simultaneously displayed like when he first heard Spyro talk nine years ago relative to himself.

[Thirteen years you've made a home in your time. Being there, it's where you belong Spyro.]

"Yes, I do belong there. All the horror that was caused when I disappeared from my home, I was able to fix. I saved so many, including the Dragoness I may just love."

Spyro turned around to look at Cynder, who Crash now saw for the first time. [She's, eight years younger than you, right?]

"As a matter a fact," Cynder replied snarky as she walked towards Spyro, Crash, and Sparx, "I am. And yes, I do know some Sign Language. Being so young makes things difficult between Spyro and me. But I guess I'll just have to wait till I'm old enough. It's weird, I know, but it's also a tradeoff I'm willing to take for never being under Malefor's control and having both of my parents alive. You did a pretty good job raising Spyro, Crash. He's grown up to be quite the hero."

Spyro chuckled at Cynder's statement, before a question grasped his attention. "Crash," he asked seriously, "where's Coco?"

Crash looked towards the floor sadly before he answered his question. [Coco and I, grew distant after I told her what I did to you. Over the past year, she's been leaving the island and began exploring the world. I went with her a couple of times, but three weeks ago I decided to stay here, and she hasn't returned since. I believe right now, Coco's in Paris, France.]

"Am I supposed to know where that is?"

[No.]

"Well as far as I know, Coco was one of the other greatest things to ever happen in your life. And she's family. I know these islands are great and all, but you can't stay her by yourself, I won't let you. Besides, I love to see her again, and rub it in her face that I was able to recreate a Time Twister… with help."

[Paris is halfway around the world, we're not going to get their anytime soon.]

"You still have you're hoverboard, right? You owe me a race and I can't think of any better destination. You down Cynder?"

"Wherever you go, I go."

˂I believe Aku-Aku wants to join us, too?˃ Sparx echoed in Crash and Spyro's minds.

˂I've been on this island for centuries; I think a new location could do me some good. I also have a bead on Coco's location, so I could act as a guide.˃

"It's settled then," Spyro announced, "I hope you've at least touched that board since we last raced. I know you probably haven't been practicing, and it won't help you that I've gotten even faster since we last raced."

[We're not going to get there in one day you know; we are traveling thousands of miles.]

"The journey will be as memorable as the destination, then."

[I hope the locals don't mind two Dragons out of their Time, then.]

"I'm sure we'll get along fine. And if they have ice cream there, then I'll have gotten everything I've came back to this time for."

 **The End**

 **(by the way, there's a timeline graphic of this story on my DeviantArt page, which I can't leave a link to)**


	25. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

Nine years ago, Dr. Cortex, the young child whose life he saved: N-Gin, his brilliant creation Subject C3, and I successfully built a time machine. It is the single greatest achievement of my life, however I never really understood the motivation behind building it, other than Cortex wanted to use it to change history for the better. He was by far the smartest human being on the planet, a curse given to him by my father: Anton Tropy. I wanted to believe that I could maybe help my nephew, maybe cure him of the premature death looming over his head while he and I were on the remote N Sanity archipelago. Although in reality I was only following in my father's footsteps, wanting to perfect humanity, no matter the cost. In that blindness, I never saw what Cortex was becoming, a monster. Well, apparently there was an explanation for how horrible he became other than him slowly loosing however much of him was indeed _human (I'd argue his genetics constituted a new species)_ , and it had to do with an evil spirit. Magic and mysticism, time travel and… Dragons, Nefarious Tropy's life just kept getting weirder and weirder.

"Were you ever ashamed of what you did to your grandson, father?"

"I perfected him, perfected humanity, made both better. How could I possibly ever be ashamed of that?"

"I knew you would never change, you belong in a prison."

"You say my grandson is dead, so there is no surviving evidence left of my… experimentations with humans. But I believe being held here against my will counts."

"Officially your dead, and nobody, including your wife or _your affairs_ could care less." Nefarious Tropy was currently in a very, very remote, privately constructed, scientific facility in Antarctica. His father, Anton Tropy, was currently being held in this facility, for even in his advanced age his mind could still prove useful.

"I'm assuming your latest tests with my genetic "key" have proven unsuccessful. I'm telling you, even in anthropomorphic animals the key will not work. The mind of a human is necessary. All you're doing is inhumane animal testing at this point."

His father's jab raised doubts in Nefarious' mind that he could successfully duplicate Cortex's method of creating Subject C3, and if all of his failed attempts were destroying potentially sentient life. He'd been working with a multitude of animals like Cortex did, and each time the test subjects couldn't accept "Anton's Key" and remain alive like "Coco" did. The Time Twister may have been my greatest invention, but C3 may have been his nephew's.

"I don't even know why I'm going to tell you this, you don't deserve to know. But your grandson, ten years ago, stabilized Anton's Key. In an anthropomorphic bandicoot he created, he was able to integrate "Anton's Key" into her genes and stabilize the negative consequences of your genetic marker. She can live a normal live and retain the brilliance you always intended. It's very possible, and that creature is still alive today."

"Impossible, the effects of the genetic marker are impossible to reverse without losing the genius associated with it. It can't be done. I spent my entire life confirming it!"

"Apparently it took a genius suffering from your 'disease' to figure out how to cure it. Unfortunately Cortex couldn't cure himself in time."

"Why hasn't… C3 been brought here to this facility to be analyzed and dissected? If my key can be maintained and stabilized in humans, it'd be the scientific breakthrough of millennia. Our posterity would be leagues smarter than us! We'd perfect humanity Nefarious!"

"Because I believe she has a life of her own. At least now I believe that. And I'm tired of following in your footsteps father. I will not drop to your level to _perfect humanity_."

With that, Nefarious walked out of Anton's holding cell and closed the door. He was met by Dr. Nitrus Brio. He was one of the only students to befriend Cortex at Madame Amberly's Academy before Cortex murdered a student there in self-defense. After he graduated from college, Nefarious offered him employment at this compound. The research being done here was to change the world, although right now it might just save it.

"How'd your father's therapy session go today?"

"Nowhere, any luck with our disgusting green friend."

"On that point, yes. We learned he can speak English fluently. Although he may be just as delirious as Anton."

"I doubt it, has Oxide said anything important yet?"

"His ramblings have been incoherent. We suspected his crash landing may have caused a head injury, but his anatomy is so bizarre it's hard to tell."

"I want to talk to him. Make sure the holding room is prepped. I want everything documented and all precautions taken. If Cortex's creations were hard to handle, I bet an alien is even worse."

Nefarious and N-Brio made their way through the compound and passed all security leading up to the aliens containment room. His spaceship and… "racing vehicle" he crashed on Earth with were on display behind a glass wall to the right of Tropy and Brio as they walked, and both were being analyzed by several scientists. Nefarious approached a large reinforced metal door and pressed his palm against a hand reader. It scanned his hand and the door slid open from the top and bottom, revealing a large white room with Oxide behind three inch bullet proof glass. Nefarious sat down in a chair and turned on the microphone so that Oxide and he could hear each other. Oxide was already rambling before Nefarious could talk.

"… is coming. Evil, ultimate evil. Cannot flee, not fast enough."

"Oxide. Is this your name?"

The alien continued to speak, mumbling now as he looked at Nefarious. He was sweating, profusely, and even with his green complexion and foreign appearance, Nefarious could tell he was terrified of something."

"Evil, pure evil. Nightmares over dreams. Nightmare becomes reality."

Nightmares… pure evil. It reminded Nefarious of Uka-Uka. It made him think. "Are you talking about an evil spirit? Uka-Uka by any chance?"

"Not servants of evil, evil itself. Life's worst nightmare. It seeks the end of everything, an enemy to life and dreams."

What Oxide was saying sounded like a crack pipe dream, thought he was dead serious in his ramblings. What if he was right? It was a possibility, however silly and idiotic he sounded. Knowing more of what he was thinking about couldn't hurt. "Who is this… Evil?"

"The destroyer of the Glade of Dreams and of Phantomile; an anti-God the age of the multiverse itself. The opposite of order: chaos. But now it comes here, seeking to use the time machine its herald on Earth was smart enough to construct, a power not even the gods themselves use. This planet, its life, its hope and dreams, are doomed. Earth will not survive, the multiverse will not survive, I will not survive. There is nowhere to run. Doomed. Dead. The nightmare."

"The… ' _nightmare'_ , it's coming here. To destroy the Earth?"

"Evil has conquered other universes, but yours is next. Through those who fall to Evil throughout the multiverse, they become its slaves. Mr. Dark and Hades Hand destroyed the Heart of Glade, causing the annihilation of the home of the limbless man who fled to this planet, and the Dream Traveler's home has been decimated in his absence. Dr. Nefarious, not you, is tearing apart the Solana Galaxy as we speak. But now, they are all coming here. All under the control of Evil, this world will not survive. Even if you defeat its heralds, Evil cannot be defeated. It is intrinsic of life, a ruler of autonomy, and an anti-God. He will cause the Nightmare of the Multiverse."

When Oxide mentioned Cortex (this was the first time Nefarious had spoken to Oxide, so how could he know about him), he started to believe Oxide. Cortex was being controlled by Uka-Uka evidently, to build a Time Machine. What if Uka-Uka was a ploy of something larger? Curious, Nefarious pressed on.

"How long do we have, Oxide?"

"No time at all. This is a nightmare you can't wake up from."

* * *

 _Lephise's song was beyond beautiful, it was the embodiment of good. It caused the renewal of the Phantomile, the capstone to all Klonoa had done to save this place, his new home._

" _We did it Huepow, we saved our home."_

 _No Klonoa. This is neither your home or mine. I am not from this world or from the Moon Kingdom. I am not their prince nor am I from Phantomile, I was given false memories when I was summoned here. I'm afraid with Lephise's song, both of us will be returning home._

" _What do you mean, Heupow? This is where I belong, where we belong friend."_

 _All of sudden, a portal formed underneath Klonoa and he was brought home._

* * *

 _I ran as fast as I could to see if the Heart of Glade was still intact, but there was nothing left of the Heart of My World. In moments, all of Glade would fade out of existence. I failed._

" _Ray… man."_

 _He turned around and ran to Ly's side, whom earlier he thought was dead. "Ly…" Rayman whispered crying._

" _I've, had a vision through the grace of Polokus. This Fate, the destruction of Glade, it will happen throughout the other worlds in the Orrery. It's… it's too late for us. You did everything you could, but this Evil you fight is more than even you can defeat. But maybe, maybe you can defeat this nightmare elsewhere and let good prevail. Go… save the others from this Fate. Save yourself."_

" _I… I'm not going to leave you."_

 _The world began to crumble, metaphysically ceasing to exist. Ly, with whatever will she had left, opened a portal to Evil's final destination, hoping to keep Rayman alive and give him the opportunity to stop the horrors that occurred to his home from happening to another world."_

" _I… love you." Ly forced Rayman back; his limbless body was then pulled into the portal, his final sight of his home vaporizing, and his love dying before fading out of existence entirely. How was he supposed to stop this in another world… alone?_

* * *

"You're a hero Ratchet; it's the right thing to do."

"To continually risk my life for this galaxy? What about me, Clank? When do I get to stop, when do I get to have my own life?"

"I… don't know Ratchet. But you can't stop now. Nefarious hasn't fled, he's heading for another planet and those people need your help."

"I've been saving this entire galaxy from threats foreign and domestic for a long time. Since when is it my problem to save other galaxies as well? And for how long will I have to save the universe, Clank? Until I die? I don't know if I can keep doing this forever. If I'm going to die as one of the last Lombaxes in the universe, I'd like to do it on my terms."

"And would you allow the fate of extinction to befall upon another species elsewhere. Tachyon caused the downfall of your species and there isn't anything left for you to do to rectify that. Don't allow your inaction to cause the same fate for another planet full of life."

"Sigh… what galaxy is Nefarious heading toward again?"

"The Milky Way."

* * *

"I'm telling you, breaking into Cyrille Le Paradox's house is beyond insane" Bentley spoke to Sly through his earpiece.

"But where else am I going to get such a view of Paris?"

"Try the Eiffel Tower."

"But there's nothing to steal there."

"And I thought the goal of this operation was reconnaissance."

"It is, but if there's anything shiny to grab I'll make sure to snatch is as well."

"So, you really think this guy is investing in a way to travel through time? I'm smart but even I know that isn't possible."

"Well, according to a strange tip that I got recently, a large amount of zeta particles were detected randomly somewhere around the lower part of Australia about nine years ago. The flux was attributed to an anomaly or an error in the satellite that happened to pick up the irregularity, but a second spike of zeta particles was detected a week ago, which is scientifically associated with a…"

"…with a chronal burst. Shit, those kinds of bursts are normally associated with black holes Sly."

"Yes, and as far as I'm know, black holes distort time."

"And you think that Cyrille Le Paradox is somehow behind this?"

"No. But the bug I had installed on Paradox's computer server seems to suggest he's heavily interested in finding out exactly what went on down under."

"You hacked into his home computer network? That's normally my job."

"Let's just say I wanted to keep this op as 'need to know' until I was sure Paradox was up to no good."

"No good, you sound like a Carmelita."

"If only I sounded that sexy. From what I've gathered combing through Paradox's private emails, he has someone held captive who is allegedly responsible for the burst. I'm going to sneak inside and listen in on the conversation. Somebody this dangerous who hates me defiantly shouldn't be messing with time… And there, the silent alarm is blocked and will not transmit once I open a window."

"Yep, I detect no outbound singles from the phone line on my monitor."

Sly dismounted from the telephone pole and proceeded to open a window on the highest part of Paradox's mansion and entered slyly. He traversed through the interior of the house, using the blueprints which he stole from the mansion's constructor and made his way downward to the secret underground section of the mansion, which was not mentioned in public records. He used a polyurethane mold of Paradox's thumb (who's prints he had _borrowed_ from the police station) to gain access to the underground facility and made his way to a vantage point where he'd remain unseen and be able to listen in and record Paradox's conversation with his abducted person. Sly got into position, in time to see Paradox standing in the middle of a large clearing as his henchman dragged a young man with a black mask draped over his entire head towards a chair, whom the henchmen violently set down on and locked him to so he couldn't move. One of the henchmen removed the black covering from the captives head, revealing a young man with half of his face replaced with cybernetics and what appeared to be a metal protrusion sticking out from that side. His right eye was also cybernetic.

"Hello Andrew, or should I say N-Gin. Let's talk business." Paradox said maniacally.

* * *

 _All around him, they were dead. Crash tried valiantly to save Coco, but was impaled before being dropped to the ground and left to die. Spyro tried to avenge his father's life but ultimately met the same fate and was thrown in Crash's direction. Spyro gave Crash one last look before scrumming to his injuries. All that was left was Coco and Klonoa. It had her in its clutches, Coco helpless to move._

" _You can't escape this Dream Walker, not here nor on Phantomile. I am your nightmare, I am the multiverse's nightmare. I bring death to all."_

" _Kl- Klonoa. I… I luv-" It killed Coco before she could finish._

Klonoa woke up violently panting and sweating nervously. He had been having nightmares recently, but none ever this horrible. He remembered all of it, the limbless man Rayman, himself in that dream-world place like he'd been there before, the alien Ratchet, the thief Sly. He had never met these people before, some of them didn't even seem real. But again he dreamt of them, this time including Coco's brother Crash and a Dragon he didn't recognize. What is going on, why am I having these nightmares?

"Is everything alright Klonoa? I heard you scream from the living room."

"Yeah, everything's… fine Coco."

"Oh come on _roomie_ , I know we don't really know each other well, but I'm here to help if I can."

"It… was a bad dream. Can I ask you something Coco?"

"Sure, fire away."

"You have a brother right, Crash?"

"Yeah, he's… back home."

"Let me ask you this then? Who's Spyro?"

Coco eyes widened at her roommate's question. She had never told him about Spyro, how could he know about him, when he was trapped a hundred thousand years in the past?

 **To be concluded in the Sequel to Crash and Spyro ADOT...**

 **Playstation All-Stars, Heroes of the Multiverse**


	26. Epilogue 2

**Epilogue 2: Who is in the Italics?**

 _What is a dream? What purpose does it serve, what merit does it have on the real world? Is there a difference between aspiring ambitions and nightmarish premonitions? I often wonder this myself? The purpose these fake memories serve. Well, I actually know, but I was wondering if you knew?_

* * *

Dr. Cortex was never a man to dwell on the past. Tragedy, failure; what happened before never a reason to quit, give up, be shameful of what he's done. It only served to motivate him forward. He was a man of science. His dreams and ambitions for the world were to make it better! In his own image he'd make things right. For his life was only a microcosm of the larger problem. Jealousy, greed, rage, and pride, the sins of man coalescing into a force dedicated to maintaining society's calcified status quo. That the world simply was full wrong and things just moved on. Disaster, crime, tragedy of any kind was simply the reality of society and despite the lethargic pace of advancement scientifically or ethically, ultimately the injustice of the human race would forever work as an opposite force to utopia. Fortunately, Cortex wasn't human. His grandfather Anton made sure of that. Cold hard science: the weapon of Cortex's mind only limited by his imagination would ensure that the Earth would take it's rightful place amongst the cosmos. That was his life's purpose... while he still had it. That unfortunately, due to his foiled machinations and his unrelenting pride, was taken from him. Though what he couldn't accomplish in life, maybe he'd get a second chance at in death.

Malefor in essence was the first Spyro there was. His fate ultimately spoke to the duality of the dichotomy: nature versus nurture. Was it his destiny or his desire to be evil. If you're told you're supposed to be a hero, and then suffer the very same fate you're supposed to be stopping, does it become your fault that you stoop to the level of the evil which ruined your innocence? Not that Malefor never took or shouldn't take responsibility for the wretchedness his actions soon wrought, but his heart would have never blackened had it not lost the love which made it beat with purpose. Ultimately his grudge with the Sorceress, whose father was responsible for forcing Aurea to sacrifice her life to save his own, was a means to find love once more. That's where Malefor's intentions begin. But now they're unrecognizable. Anger has consumed him. It was what Spyro traveled back in time from his adopted father's home to fix.

For you see, evil in the hearts of those who are sane and are alive (aka not insane or like some kind of anti-god or something... if that's a thing?), at its root their crimes are for a cause they believe in. Either corrupted due to arrogance, hubris, prejudice, or hatred, the antagonist at some point was forced away from the path of normalcy. Fate... intervened. There's a reason Fate is Weird (and why I've always capitalized it). If you look into the etymology (history of a word) of the word "weird", you'll come to find out that the word often was used to point out a striking coincidence only explainable by the intervention of gods? _Thats... Wyrd?_

 _So is it Wyrd then that Crash came to adopt Spyro as his own son, causing the paths of two separate heroes integral to maintaining peace for those they know and those they protect? Or is this coincidence simply the concoction of a wild imagination (ties in with the first paragraph, doesn't it)? Someone who dares to dream, maybe. Someone who realized that more than one hero will be needed to defend the innocent from a threat threatening their shared universe._

* * *

Because though the path of the wicked is determined by fate for mortals, true evil - the concept or idea of it - is not. This form of evil's origin is not rooted in any conceivable notion, it is simply an absence of good as is darkness the absence of light. True evil cannot exist in a universe full of life. True evil exists in defiance of life. It seeks only the end of the very thing which snuffs it from existence. Hence the big bad thing.

 _Those who dare to dream are good at heart. In their dreams they see who they want to be or warn themselves of what they shouldn't be and use the intuitions of the subconscious to guide themselves forward. This is an evolutionary aspect of the sentient mind. It is intrinsic to life, evolved in order to strengthen the mind, and it also Wyrdly happens to be a critical function of the entire universe, too. Our universe relies on not just dreams, but imagination too to exist. For there exists unbeknownst to the quintillions of sentient life who dare to dream a symbiotic mutual relationship between the world they live in and the dreams they have of it._

 _Welcome then, unsuspecting dreamer, to Phantomile. Where in this vistic, symbolic, land the symbiotic relationship between the living and the afterlife meet. Beautiful varying lands carved by imagination where the power of hope gathered from dreams is itself used to cause prosperity back to the actual universe. You see the powers at be did not create reality and then let it form on its own as some sort of brilliant simulation (like from code, mind you... wait, games are code?). It's a constant effort to keep it vivid and alive. Where although for the living, dreaming big only motivations one to do the best they can in life, in the planes of reality beyond their hope is converted to wellness for the universe as a hole, ensuring it's continued growth and prosperity, for both all the sentient life on Earth and planets beyond, the quintillions of lives in all throughout the universe itself benefit from each other mutually. A recursive loop of hope and renewal which has continued for billions of years. Although in "our" physical universe, the reason we exist and can think is because of the fundamental forces and laws of the universe which are very explainable by science and mysticism. Why is that? Why is it that the purpose of Phantomile is unobservable to us living folk? Welcome then to the second unfathomable plane of existence, responsible for this very phenomena: the Glade of Dreams._

 _In essences, the very creation of everything, from a single explosion of unfathomable scale set in motion the dispersal of all 10_

 _80_ _atoms or so which because of the natural laws of a new universe gave way to lives which through their dreams power it's continued renewal (out of breath). But why do physics work the way they do, that over time the systems of the universe works to create living beings with sentience that via their intelligence can understand and appreciate the worlds they live in and build societies, dream, and live in prosperity? Quite simple ladies and gents, it's because the power of so many dreaming can be converted - like from potential energy to kinetic energy - from mere baseless hopes to the Laws of Everything (you know, kind of like that hypothesized Theory of Everything smart people talk about? A stretch you exclaim? Well, all I can say then is you aren't dreaming enough. Don't spoil the universe for the rest of us alright). Yes REALLY! A world of fiction is responsible for the forces which drive reality. Gravity, electromagnetism, a strong force, and a confusing weak force, the most fundamental interactions of nature responsible for EVERYTHING. This how the Glade of Dreams functions. A separate world where given the power of dreams harvested from Phantomile gathered from the living, it in turn gives rise to the universe. It makes physics work? And you need to go to class to figure it out! Ha. You get all that by the way? I'll break it down for you:_

 _\- All living, sentient, beings in the physical universe dream_  
 _\- The collective power is harnessed in a place called Phantomile._  
 _\- That converted power of dreams is then shifted to the Glade of Dreams_  
 _\- The Glade in turn drives the universe via its Standard Model of Physics to make the material universe function correctly_  
 _\- Because the universe breeds living creatures, those living beings can then power reality with their minds._

 _You see, it's basically a system, an organism if you will. The universe is a organism comprised of quintillions of other smaller organisms. Kind of like how a body is comprised of... cells? Get It! Woah all this makes so much sense it has to be true!?_

 _The question is then (to be or not to be? hehe), where does evil fit into the picture? The Cortex-es, The Malefor's (his intentions are in his name), The_ Ghadius-es (who?), The Mr. Dark's (oh come on), Nefarious-es, the Baron Praxis' (oh I see the pattern), and _Cyrille Le Paradox'es fit into this? Why are there agents working against the intent of the universe?_

 _Well then why do people die, suffer, lose hope, and murder? There is an explanation tying into this esoteric existential model of the universe proposed, which also quite ironically also parallels so well with a certain protagonist turned antagonist from before 1995. Before the inception of the Playstation, where a lot of our intrepid heroes at one point called or still do call the system their home. A certain polygonal being._

It was just than that someone knocked on my door. UGH! I was just about to get to the good part! What! Who is it? I got up from my amazing sofa and headed to my front door through my quite lavish upscale apartment with my prized 80" TV and lavish interior decorations to open my apartment door. This better be important! Opening the door only ended up revealing Klonoa. Oh, he's on Earth at this point. Right, forgot about that.

"What do you want cat thing?"

"As pleasant as ever. Look, I was wondering if you've seen Coco around? She's been gone for a while and isn't like her to disappear for so long. I'm starting to get worried."

"What, are you two like a thing now?" That would be awful, Coco is supposed to fall in love with me, for I'm so awesome and Klonoa... shouldn't even be here in France. Well, actually I shouldn't be here either. But I say "hoopla" to canons!

"No," Klonoa said defensively yet not so loudly, potentially hiding his embarrassment, "I'm her roommate, and I'm worried, that's all."

"Oh yes, Coco Bandicoot indeed. Where could she be, where has she gone? And why hasn't her brother showed up at all with his quadrupedal, winged, son? Mysteries indeed my cat friend. But kind of like my identity, all is to be revealed soon enough."

"Oh my god, why do I even bother talking to you. Look if you're not going to help..."

"AH di- di- di- di -di! Don't spoil it Klo. Look, I'll help you, I'll help all of you! Crash, Spyro, you, Coco, That Ray guy, the alien, the thief, and the vigilante. But when the time is appropriate. As of right now though, I have a TV show to catch! But you, however, might want to find out what happened to a certain human man named Andrew, or by his new alias, N Gin. Why? Well didn't you read the epilogueto ADOT?"

Klonoa was looking at me funny, obviously not aware of the fourth wall shenanigans I was pulling. I meanwhile had my copy of _Crash and Spyro, A Dragon out of Time_ in my hands with the gorgeous cover art on it done maybe ironically or maybe intentionally done by an artist who lives in this city (Paris, France if you weren't paying attention), CartoonSilverFox (on DA). Currently I'm patiently waiting for the author of said book to finish the next three books in the series. The next of which is said to soon be started And wouldn't you know it I get to be in the book too!. You know what it is (I see you grinning slightly! It's finally coming! AREN'T YOU AS EXITED AS I AM! WHOEVER I AM? [WINKS '=} ] ) don't you reader!?

 **To be concluded in the Sequel to Crash and Spyro ADOT...**

 **Rayman and Klonoa, Daydreamers and Nightmare Fighters**


End file.
